Salivary gland tumors: a 15-year experience of a universıty hospital in Turkey

Abstract

T he salivary glands consist of three major glands as parotid, submandibular and sublingual glands and hundreds of minor glands, which are diffusely located in the beginning part of the respiratory system. Tumors of the salivary glands are rarely encountered. However, they appear with different histopathological characters. Different biological behaviors can be observed even in neoplasms defined by the same name. In the latest classification made by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2017, salivary gland tumors were classified into more than 30 benign and malignant histologic subtypes [1]. This wide histopathological spectrum and significant differences in prognosis between them distinguish salivary gland tumors from other organ neoplasms. Salivary gland tumors account for approximately 3-4% of all head and neck tumors [2]. Their inci-ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE: To determine the demographic characteristics of benign and malignant salivary gland tumors in our department in the last 15 years. METHODS: In this study, the files of the patients who underwent salivary gland surgery between 2004 and 2019 in our department were analyzed retrospectively. A total of 366 patients whose diagnoses of salivary gland tumor histopathologically confirmed were included in this study. The demographic data of the patients and tumor localizations were recorded, and their relationships with histopathological results were examined. RESULTS: Of the 366 tumors, 292 (80%) of them was originated from the parotid gland, 52 (14%) from the submandibular gland, and 22 (6%) from the minor salivary gland. The male: female ratio was found as 1.2:1, and the mean age of the patients was 50.37 years. A total of 259 (70.8%) tumors were benign, and 107 (29.2%) were malignant. The most frequent benign tumor was pleomorphic adenoma, with 121 cases (46.7%). While pleomorphic adenomas constituted the majority of the benign tumors of the submandibular gland and minor salivary glands, Warthin tumor was detected more than pleomorphic adenoma in the parotid gland. The most common malignant tumor was mucoepidermoid carcinoma, with 26 cases (24.3%). CONCLUSION: The distribution of the salivary gland tumors detected in our department was found to be substantially similar to other worldwide series. Unlike the literature, we concluded that salivary gland tumors were seen slightly more in males, minor salivary gland tumors were relatively rare and Warthin tumors were more frequently detected in our region.

Salivary Gland Tumors: a Ten-Year Retrospective Analysis in a Brazilian Teaching Hospital

“…It was found that the pleomorphic adenoma was the most frequent type of salivary gland tumor, accounting for 53.4% of all tumors and 69.6% of benign tumors. Other studies involving tumors of salivary glands reported similar results, with pleomorphic adenoma representing the most frequent tumor type 8,15,[19][20][21][22][24][25][26][27][28][29]31,[34][35][36] and commonly found on the right side. Interestingly, this distribution was observed in the parotid tumors evaluated.…”

“…Cy s t i c a d e n o i d c a rc i n o m a w a s t h e m o s t prevalent malignant salivary gland tumor (6 cases), representing 8.2% of all tumors and 35.3% of malignant tumors, compatible with what was found in other studies 12,14,15,17,20,22,24,28,30,34 . However, the mucoepidermoid carcinoma, another malignant tumor, was the most prevalent 8,12,14,21,31,35,36 in other studies. Mucoepidermoid carcinoma and adenocarcinoma not otherwise specified (NOS) after cystic adenoid carcinoma, were the second most common tumors found.…”

“…The sublingual and minor glands were the least affected where each one was only affected once. Previous literature data report that minor salivary glands show a higher prevalence of malignant tumors compared to the major glands 8,12,[33][34][35][36] . Nevertheless, another study also showed greater involvement of the parotid gland in both malignant and benign tumors 37 .…”

Adenocarcinoma de células claras de glándula salival menor: Reporte de un caso

“…El adenocarcinoma de células claras de glándulas salivares menores representa el 1% de los tumores malignos de glándulas salivales. De hecho, en revisiones de casos, como la de Mengi et al, con 366 casos de tumores de glándulas salivales, no se hace referencia a adenocarcinomas de células claras de glándula salival menor [7]. Silva Cunha et al [8], con 164 casos reportados de tumores de glándulas salivales, tampoco reporta casos de adenocarcinomas de células claras de glándula salival menor; así mismo en la publicación de Gonzales et al [9],con 107 casos de tumores de glándulas salivales.…”

“…En la literatura se menciona el diagnóstico diferencial con oncocytoma, carcinomas mioepiteliales, metástasis de tumor renal, entre las más citadas por los diferentes artículos revisados. En cuanto al pronóstico es bueno en la mayoría de casos reportados en la literatura internacional, pero se debe hacer hincapié en que el número de casos de esta patología es reducido [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13].…”