Primary sinonasal malignant melanoma with systemic metastasis in a non-gray horse

A 27-y-old Anglo-Arabian gelding with bay coat color was presented with a swelling of the left maxillary region. Fenestration on the left maxilla revealed that the left maxillary sinus was filled with black-red tissue. A portion of the tissue was excised and diagnosed histologically as malignant melanoma. Genotyping of the STX17 gene for gray coat color revealed that the horse did not have the “gray” factor. The horse was euthanized ~3 mo after first presentation. During autopsy, a black-to-gray mass extended from the left nasal cavity to the surrounding paranasal sinus and invaded the hard palate, cribriform plate, and the cranial portion of the left olfactory bulb. Moreover, identical black nodules were present in lymph nodes from the mandible to the larynx, and in the spleen, liver, kidney, and adrenal glands. However, masses were not found in the skin, perineal region, or pelvic cavity. All of the black-to-gray nodules were malignant melanomas that were histologically identical to the initial biopsy; tumor emboli were also found in the kidney. Sinonasal mucosal melanoma is a rare disease in horses.