Background: To investigate the relationship between clinical and histopathological characteristics and overall survival of patients with oral mucosal melanoma (OMM) without distal metastasis in order to provide predictive prognostic information of OMM.

Aim The purpose of this study was to explore the treatment and prognosis of head and neck rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) in adults. Methods Fifty-nine patients with head and neck RMS in adults (AHNRMS) treated in one institution were selected. Multivariate analysis was used to evaluate the various variables related to overall survival (OS). Results The estimated 5-year OS was 36%. The rate of cervical lymph node (CLN) involvement was 28%. Patients with embryonic RMS who underwent chemotherapy enjoyed a favorable outcome according to the multivariate analysis (P = 0.047). Local recurrence (n = 30) and distant metastasis (n = 17) were the main causes of treatment failure. The rate of local recurrence or distant metastasis in the patients who underwent chemotherapy also decreased. Positive surgical margin (32%) was frequently seen in the AHNRMS. Primary site (P = 0.01), tumor size (P < 0.0001), CLN (P = 0.003), and margin status (P = 0.0002) were significant prognostic factors related to OS. Conclusions Head and neck RMS in adults is a rare malignancy with a poor outcome, which is more likely to have CLN involvement compared with other soft tissue sarcomas of the head and neck. Standard treatment for AHNRMS should comprise surgery and chemotherapy.