Progressive Acral Lentiginous Melanoma diagnosed via histopathology and surgically eradicated in a fingernail in a 69-year-old male - A Case Report

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Acral Lentiginous Melanoma (ALM) transpires in a profoundly scarce percentage of the population and is intercalated with a low survival rate. This is partly because such tumors are chiefly diagnosed at an advanced stage. Diagnosis is delayed largely due to the difficulties in recognizing the early histopathological signs and clinical presentations of Acral Melanoma. CASE PRESENTATION: We demonstrate the case of a previously healthy 69-year-old Middle Eastern male patient, who presented to our university hospital's Dermatology clinic with a papule under the right ring fingernail with spontaneous Onycholysis of the entire nail, suggesting a spontaneous malformation in his finger. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: ALM is an abundantly rare subtype of melanoma that chiefly originates from the skin of the acral tissues. In this case it arose on the fingernail of a 69-year-old male, who has undergone 2 surgeries to eradicate the tumor with safe margins and as a ramification of successful follow-up for 6 months, has been deemed free of tumor recurrence or metastasis. CONCLUSION: The aim of this article is to highlight the vitality of early detection, diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of malignant Acral Lentiginous Melanoma in patients of all ages, especially with older patient populations.