Malignant melanoma of the female genital system: a report of 48 patients and review of the literature.

Malignant melanoma of the female genital tract comprises 3% of all melanomas afflicting females. Melanoma of the vulva is most common, comprising 45 patients treated by the author. Thirty-two percent had metastases to the regional lymph nodes on presentation. Five-year survival is 31.6%. Radical vulvectomy and radical groin dissection is the treatment of choice. Only 80 melanomas of the vagina have been reported, with cures being an extreme rarity. Forty cases of the female urethra reported in the literature and only five survivors have been reported. Melanoma of the uterus is extremely rare, with no cures recorded. Melanoma of the ovary may occur within a teratoma but most frequently is metastatic.