Abstract:

Objective    To explore the clinical, histopathologic and immunohistochemical features and the methods of diagnosis and treatment of myoepithelial Carcinoma in head and neck. Methods    A retrospective study was carried out in 5 cases of myoepithelial carcinoma in head and neck from January 2003 to December 2012.  With literature review, the clinical, histopathologic and immunohistochemistic characteristics of this disease were discussed. Results    There were 3 cases originated in parotid gland, 1 case in hard palate, and 1 in nasal cavity and nasal sinus. All cases were diagnosed by pathohistological and immunohistochemical findings. 4 cases underwent  radical surgery, while 1 case received  radio-chemotherapy. After the operation,  local recurrenceoccurred in 3 cases, in which 2 cases of cervical lymph node metastasis  underwent secondary neck dissection, while  distance metastasis was identified in 2 cases. During the follow-up, four patients died of tumor , and 1 patient was tumor-free survival(10 months after operation). Conclusion    Myoepithelial carcinoma in head and neck is a malignant epithelial tumor with poor prognosis, which mostly occurs in the salivary glands, rarely in nasal cavity and nasal sinus, with  high  occurrence of  cervical lymph nodes and/or distance metastasis. Comprehensive treatment is recommned, however,  postoperative recurrence  is still common.

Key words: Myoepithelial carcinoma, Clinical characteristics, Immunohistochemistry, Histopathology