Salivary gland cancer is a cancer that forms in tissues of a salivary gland. The salivary glands are classified as major and minor. The major salivary glands consist of the parotid, submandibular, and sublingual glands. The minor glands include small mucus-secreting glands located throughout the palate, nasal and oral cavity.[1] Salivary gland cancer is rare, with 2% of head and neck tumors forming in the salivary glands, the majority in the parotid.[2]
[edit] Classification
Benign tumor of the submandibular gland, also known as pleomorphic adenoma, presented as a painless neck mass in a 40-year-old man. At the left of the image is the white tumor with its characteristic cartilaginous cut surface. To the right is the normally lobated submandibular salivary gland.
Salivary gland neoplasms are classified by the World Health Organization as primary or secondary, benign or malignant, and by tissue of origin.[3] This system defines five broad categories of salivary gland neoplasms:[4]
[edit] Signs and symptoms
Signs include fluid draining from the ear, pain, numbness, weakness, trouble swallowing, and a lump. The most common symptom of major salivary gland cancer is a painless lump in the affected gland, sometimes accompanied by paralysis of the facial nerve.
[edit] Causes
. Risk factors include older age, radiation therapy treatment to head or neck, and being exposed to certain substances at work
[edit] Pathenogenesis
[edit] Diagnosis
[edit] Prevention
[edit] Treatment
Stage I Salivary Gland Cancer Treatment for stage I salivary gland cancer depends on whether the cancer is low-grade (slow growing) or high-grade (fast growing). If the cancer is low-grade, treatment may include the following: • Surgery with or without radiation therapy. • Fast neutron radiation therapy. If the cancer is high-grade, treatment may include the following: • Surgery with or without radiation therapy. • A clinical trial of chemotherapy. • A clinical trial of a new local therapy. Stage II Salivary Gland Cancer Treatment for stage II salivary gland cancer depends on whether the cancer is low-grade (slow growing) or high-grade (fast growing). If the cancer is low-grade, treatment may include the following: • Surgery with or without radiation therapy. • Radiation therapy. • Chemotherapy. If the cancer is high-grade, treatment may include the following: • Surgery with or without radiation therapy. • Fast neutron or photon-beam radiation therapy. • A clinical trial of radiation therapy and/or radiosensitizers. • A clinical trial of chemotherapy. Stage III Salivary Gland Cancer Treatment for stage III salivary gland cancer depends on whether the cancer is low-grade (slow growing) or high-grade (fast growing). If the cancer is low-grade, treatment may include the following: • Surgery with or without lymphadenectomy. Radiation therapy may also be given after surgery. • Radiation therapy. • Fast neutron radiation therapy to lymph nodes with cancer. • Chemotherapy. • A clinical trial of fast neutron radiation therapy to the tumor. • A clinical trial of chemotherapy. If the cancer is high-grade, treatment may include the following: • Surgery with or without lymphadenectomy. Radiation therapy may also be given after surgery. • Fast neutron radiation therapy. • Radiation therapy as palliative therapy to relieve symptoms and improve quality of life. • A clinical trial of radiation therapy and/or radiosensitizers. • A clinical trial of chemotherapy. Stage IV Salivary Gland Cancer Treatment of stage IV salivary gland cancer may include the following: • Fast neutron or photon-beam radiation therapy. • A clinical trial of chemotherapy with or without radiation therapy.
[edit] Surgery
[edit] Radiotherapy
Fast neutron therapy has been used successfully to treat salivary gland tumors,[5] and has shown to be significantly more effective than photons in studies treating unresectable salivary gland tumors.[6][7]
[edit] Chemotherapy
[edit] Prognosis
[edit] Epidemiology
[edit] History
[edit] See also
- ^ Shah, p. 240
- ^ Harari, p. 89
- ^ IARC, p. 210
- ^ IARC, p. 210
- ^ Douglas JD, Koh WJ , Austin-Seymour, M, Laramore GE. Treatment of Salivary Gland Neoplasms with fast neutron Radiotherapy. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg Vol 129 944-948 Sep 2003
- ^ Laramore GE, Krall JM, Griffin TW, Duncan W, Richter MP, Saroja KR, Maor MH, Davis LW. Neutron versus photon irradiation for unresectable salivary gland tumors: final report of an RTOG-MRC randomized clinical trial. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 1993 Sep 30;27(2):235-40.
- ^ Krüll A, Schwarz R, Engenhart R, et al.: European results in neutron therapy of malignant salivary gland tumors. Bull Cancer Radiother 83 (Suppl): 125-9s, 1996
[edit] References
[edit] External links
This article incorporates public domain material from the U.S. National Cancer Institute document "Dictionary of Cancer Terms".
This article incorporates public domain material from the U.S. National Cancer Institute document "Dictionary of Cancer Terms".
