Background: Vascular metastatic tumors of the mandible are unusual and management of bleeding may be difficult.
Case report: An 83-year-old woman with a mandibular metastasis from a renal-cell carcinoma developed oral pain and episodes of bleeding of 2-weeks duration. Embolization was successful in stopping blood loss which occurred during surgical biopsy. Eight months after embolization, the patient is pain free and no bleeding has recurred.
Discussion: Embolization during arteriography procedures for tumor exploration can be useful in acute situations to improve survival and patient comfort. The aim may be palliative care or preparation for curative excision.