{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,9]],"date-time":"2026-10-09T04:50:26Z","timestamp":1791521426851,"version":"4.3.4"},"reference-count":25,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,9]],"date-time":"2026-10-09T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1791504000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Med."],"abstract":"<jats:p>Amelanotic subungual melanoma (ASM) is a rare variant of nail unit melanoma (NUM) lacking melanin pigmentation, frequently misdiagnosed as a benign post-traumatic or infectious lesion. To our knowledge, ASM becoming clinically apparent within 24\u2005h following minor blunt trauma has not been reported previously. We report the case of a 66-year-old male who presented with a persistent flesh-colored nodule beneath his right thumbnail that was manifested within 24\u2005h after minor blunt trauma caused by nail clippers. The lesion was non-tender, non-pigmented, and unresponsive to 2 weeks of antibiotic therapy. Histopathology revealed diffuse subepidermal proliferation of atypical cells with signet-ring morphology. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) demonstrated positivity for vimentin, HMB45, and Melan-A, and negativity for cytokeratin 5 (CK5) and S-100. Ki-67 was approximately 30%; Breslow thickness was 2.5\u2005mm. Final diagnosis: ASM, AJCC stage IIA (T3aN0M0). Diagnostic excisional biopsy with a 2-mm margin was performed; sentinel lymph node biopsy of two axillary lymph nodes was negative. At 1-year follow-up, no local recurrence or distant metastasis was observed. This case demonstrates that ASM can become clinically evident within 24\u2005h after acute trauma, likely through unmasking of a pre-existing subclinical tumor. For post-traumatic nail lesions unresponsive to antibiotics, early biopsy with a comprehensive IHC panel (including Melan-A, HMB45, and S-100) is essential.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fmed.2026.1991898","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,9]],"date-time":"2026-10-09T04:26:16Z","timestamp":1791519976000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Amelanotic subungual melanoma becoming clinically apparent within 24\u2005h after minor blunt trauma: a case report"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Huiru","family":"Wang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Dermatology, The 985th Hospital of the Joint Logistic Support Force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army","place":["Taiyuan, Shanxi, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Peng","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of 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