An intruder who entered a woman's home in Melbourne's east is dead after a neighbour heard screaming and came to her aid, police have said.

The woman screamed out that someone was trying to rob her house on Cassia Grove, in Frankston, about 1:30pm on Friday, police said.

"As a result of that a nearby neighbour who heard the woman scream came running out to her assistance," Detective Sergeant Rob Nazaretian said.

"There was a confrontation between the neighbour and the male intruder and it appears that male has lost his life."

The woman living at the house, believed to be a tenant, was alone at the time.

She was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries but was "in a fairly distressed way", Sergeant Nazaretian said.

He said the intruder had not been formally identified and the exact cause of death was unknown.

Investigations are continuing.