What type of cancer is Mucoepidermoid carcinoma?
Mucoepidermoid carcinoma Mucoepidermoid carcinomas are the most common type of salivary gland cancer. Most start in the parotid glands. They develop less often in the submandibular glands or in minor salivary glands inside the mouth. These cancers are usually low grade, but they can also be intermediate or high grade.
Is Mucoepidermoid carcinoma aggressive?
Background Mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) of salivary glands is a malignant, locally aggressive neoplasm with metastatic potential. The clinical course is usually dependent on histology; however, low-grade carcinomas can result in metastases and tumor-related death.
How is Mucoepidermoid carcinoma diagnosed?
When present, they are often low-grade lesions, located most commonly in the parotid gland, and have a female preponderance. Diagnostic evaluation should include CT or MRI and fine-needle aspiration biopsy. Treatment is surgical, with complete tumor excision with clear margins.
Is Mucoepidermoid carcinoma hereditary?
Mucoepidermoid carcinoma, or cancer of the salivary gland, is a “genetic” disease in the sense that it occurs due to changes ( mutations ) in genes that regulate how cells in the body divide. However, mucoepidermoid carcinoma is not inherited from a parent or passed down through a family.
What causes acinic cell carcinoma?
Acinic cell carcinoma is more prevalent in women than in men. The exact cause of salivary gland cancers, including acinic cell carcinoma, is unknown; however, research suggests that possible causes of the disease may be previous exposure to radiation, wood dust inhalation, and a family history of salivary cancers.
How common is Mucoepidermoid carcinoma?
Mucoepidermoid carcinomas account for 2.8% to 15.5% of all salivary gland tumors, 12% to 29% of malignant salivary gland tumors, and 6.5% to 41% of minor salivary gland tumors. It is also the most common central salivary gland tumor of the jaws.
What are the different types of mucoepidermoid carcinoma?
Mucoepidermoid carcinoma cell types are classified histologically as low, intermediate, and high-grade types. High-grade tumors are poorly differentiated, and they are made up primarily of squamous epithelial and intermediate cells.
Is there surgery for low grade Mucoepidermoid carcinoma?
Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma. At this time, however, surgical management of low-grade mucoepidermoid carcinomas is the standard care, and those of the subglottis should be centered on attempts to preserve laryngeal function as long as tumor-free margins can be achieved.
How old do you have to be to get a mucoepidermoid carcinoma?
Reports of mucoepidermoid carcinomas of the subglottis are not common. Women are more commonly affected than men (3:2), and the mean age at onset is in the 5th decade of life.
How is EGFR mutation different from mucoepidermoid adenomas?
EGFR mutation has also been described in some cases. Low-grade mucoepidermoid carcinomas differ from mucous gland adenomas by the presence of intermediate cells and squamous differentiation in the former.
