Diagnostic challenges and successful organ-preserving therapy in a case of secretory carcinoma of minor salivary glands

Insights Into Pediatric Secretory Carcinoma of the Salivary Gland: A Case Report

Secretory carcinoma of the salivary gland (SCSG) is a rare head and neck tumor in adults and exceptional at the pediatric age. Its varied histological subtypes and distinct clinical presentation pose diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. Therefore, standardized guidelines are of utmost importance for the care of these patients, especially in children. Here we present an 11-year-old male presented with a left cheek mass initially diagnosed as lipoma. A wide resection was performed and SCSG was revealed in the histopathologic and immunohistochemistry analysis. The presentation of this case provides valuable information on the diagnostic and therapeutic complexities of SCSG. It emphasizes the need for standardized guidelines and further research to optimize pediatric patient outcomes. Overall, this case report is a crucial resource for clinicians and researchers, highlighting the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration and early intervention in managing SCSG.

Recent developments in the pathology of primary pulmonary salivary gland-type tumours

Primary pulmonary salivary gland-type tumours are rare neoplasms that are thought to arise from seromucinous glands that are located in the submucosa of large airways. These neoplasms have clinical and pathologic features that are distinct from other pulmonary neoplasms. The majority of primary pulmonary salivary gland-type tumours are malignant, with the most common entities being mucoepidermoid carcinoma, adenoid cystic carcinoma, and epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma. Less commonly seen are myoepithelial carcinoma, hyalinizing clear cell carcinoma, acinic cell carcinoma, secretory carcinoma, salivary duct carcinoma, intraductal carcinoma, and polymorphous adenocarcinoma. Benign salivary gland-type tumours of the lung include pleomorphic adenoma and sialadenoma papilliferum. Morphologic, immunophenotypic, and molecular features of these neoplasms are largely similar to salivary gland tumours elsewhere, and therefore the exclusion of metastatic disease requires clinical and radiologic correlation. However, the differential diagnostic considerations are different in the lung. The distinction of salivary gland-type tumours from their histologic mimics is important for both prognostication and treatment decisions. Overall, salivary gland type-tumours tend to have a more favourable outcome than other pulmonary carcinomas, although high-grade variants exist for many of these tumour types. Recent advances in our understanding of the spectrum of salivary gland-type tumours reported in the lung and their diversity of molecular and immunohistochemical features have helped to refine the classification of these tumours and have highlighted a few differences between salivary gland-type tumours of the lung and those primary to other sites.

Radiological features of head and neck mammary analogue secretory carcinoma: 11 new cases with a systematic review of 29 cases reported in 28 publications

PURPOSE

This retrospective study aimed to investigate the radiological features of head and neck mammary analogue secretory carcinoma (MASC) and systematically review previous publications and 11 new cases.

METHODS

We included patients with pathologically proven MASCs with preoperative CT or MRI images, including 11 patients from our hospital and 29 patients from 28 publications extracted after screening 645 abstracts. Two board-certified radiologists reviewed and evaluated all radiological images. The frequency of metastasis during the follow-up period in tumors with well- and ill-defined margins was compared using a Fisher's exact test.

RESULTS

The median age at diagnosis was 52.5 years (range, 7-78 years; 20 males). Of the 40 patients, those in their 50 s were the most common (10/40, 25.0%), and the main tumor site was the parotid gland (27/40, 42.5%). Characteristic radiological features included high intensity on T1WI in the cystic components and tumors frequently showed "papillary and cystic," which showed a projection into the cystic components, or "non-papillary and cystic" morphology, which did not show projection of the solid components. Tumor metastasis was found in 10/35 patients (28.6%) during the follow-up period, with a significant difference in frequency between the tumors with well- and ill-defined margin (well-defined (4/26) vs. ill-defined (6/9); P = 0.0074).

CONCLUSION

MASCs are newly recognized malignant tumors. Characteristic T1WI high intensity on MRI and predominant cystic morphology may reflect its unique histological profile. Ill-defined tumor margin status was related to frequent metastasis. Awareness of these characteristic radiological features can assist radiologists in better detection of this novel entity.