Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2017 Jul-Aug;92(4):531-533.
doi: 10.1590/abd1806-4841.20176190.

The recurrent nevus phenomenon

Rafaella Daboit Castagna  1 , Juliana Mazzoleni Stramari  1 , Raíssa Massaia Londero Chemello  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

The recurrent nevus phenomenon

Rafaella Daboit Castagna et al. An Bras Dermatol. 2017 Jul-Aug.

Abstract

Recurrent melanocytic nevus is a proliferation of melanocytes arising from a melanocytic nevus removed partially. Asymmetry and irregular pigmentation may lead to misdiagnosis of melanoma. We report a patient presented with a lesion on the lower abdomen, which was removed by shave excision. Anatomopathological examination revealed an intradermal melanocytic nevus. Two months later, a new irregular hyperpigmented lesion appeared in the surgical scar. Histopathology of the excisional biopsy revealed a recurrent melanocytic nevus. Recurrent melanocytic nevus manifests as a scar with hyper or hypopigmented areas, linear streaking, stippled pigmented halos, and/or diffuse pigmentation patterns. Histologically, the dermoepidermal junction and the superficial dermis show melanocytic proliferation overlying the scarred area. When a pathological report of the previous lesion is not available, complete excision is the gold standard. Otherwise, regular dermoscopic monitoring is a therapeutic option. The present report emphasizes the importance of histopathological examination of the excised material - even in cases of suspected benign lesions - and warns patients about the possibility of recurrence in case of incompletely removed lesions.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: none.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Right lower quadrant of the abdomen: irregular hyperchromic patch with erythematous halo, measuring about 1cm.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Dermoscopy: predominance of a blackish homogeneous pattern with asymmetric and irregular borders
Figure 3
Figure 3
Histopathological examination of excisional biopsy (Hematoxylin & eosin, X40)
Figure 4
Figure 4
Dermal fibrosis, melanocytes with intracytoplasmic pigment and perivascular chronic inflammatory infiltrate (Hematoxylin & eosin, X400)
Figure 5
Figure 5
Junctional nests of mature nevus cells and some isolated nevus cells (Hematoxylin & eosin, X40)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Brenn T. Pitfalls in the evaluation of melanocytic lesions. Histopathology. 2012;60:690–705. - PubMed
    1. Longo C, Moscarella E, Pepe P, Cesinaro AM, Casari A, Manfredini M, et al. Confocal microscopy of recurrent naevi and recurrent melanomas: a retrospective morphological study. Br J Dermatol. 2011;165:61–68. - PubMed
    1. King R, Hayzen BA, Page RN, Googe PB, Zeagler D, Mihm MC Jr. Recurrent nevus phenomenon: a clinicopathologic study of 357 cases and histologic comparison with melanoma with regression. Mod Pathol. 2009;22:611–617. - PubMed
    1. King R, Hayzen BA, Page RN, Googe PB, Zeagler D, Mihm MC Jr. Persistent melanocytic nevi: a review and analysis of 205 cases. Mod Pathol. 2009;22:611–617. - PubMed
    1. Fox JC, Reed JA, Shea CR. The Recurrent Nevus Phenomenon: A History of Challenge, Controversy, and Discovery. Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2011;135:842–846. - PubMed

Publication types