Title: Pigmentation status as a Prognostic Biomarker for Survival in Mucosal Melanoma

Background Mucosal melanoma (MM) is a rare, aggressive subtype of melanoma with limited therapeutic options and a dismal clinical outcome. Systemic treatments and predictive biomarkers for MM are missing and the gold standard is complete surgical resection. Diagnosis can be challenging, especially when pigmentation in suspicious lesions is absent. The prognostic value of pigmentation in MM has not been assessed.