Malignant Melanoma of the Tongue: A Scoping Review

Malignant melanoma of the tongue is a rare and highly aggressive neoplasm, constituting less than 2% of oral melanomas. Due to its rarity and atypical clinical presentation, diagnosis and management pose significant challenges. This study provides a scoping review of research on melanoma of the tongue to determine the available data on the epidemiology, clinical features, histopathological characteristics, treatment strategies, and outcomes of this malignancy. Our literature search identified papers published from 1941 to 2024, and 47 individual cases were analyzed. The mean age at diagnosis was 58.6 years, with a male predominance (58.1%). Lesions were most frequently located on the body and lateral borders of the tongue. A high percentage (38.5%) presented with distant metastases at diagnosis, commonly involving the lungs and brain. Histopathological examination highlighted spindle cell morphology in many cases, with immunohistochemical markers such as HMB-45 and S-100 proving essent...