We report on a 61-year-old male patient who developed a melanoma at the site of a suspected Bowen's lesion on the right cheek. This lesion had evolved for years and had been treated using photodynamic therapy (PDT) in an outpatient facility. Only a couple of months after a single PDT treatment, a melanoma was histologically diagnosed. After excision, multiple metastases were found. The therapeutic strategy comprised re-excision, neck dissection and lateral parotidectomy - due to a metastasis - as well as subsequent alpha-interferon injections. The possible role of PDT in the promotion of melanoma is discussed.
(c) 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel.