Primary melanoma of the cauda equina: Case report and review of the literature

Abstract

The authors report the case of an 82 year-old woman with a primary malignant melanoma of the cauda equina resembling lumbar schwannoma in the MRI study. Melanocytic neoplasms are very rare but they should be included in the differential diagnosis of lesions involving the spinal nerves. The treatment of choice for these lesions is complete resection followed by radiotherapy. The outcomes reported in the literature are variable and are associated with the age of presentation, histopathological findings, extent of surgical resection and absence of metastatic lesions.