Mucoepidermoid carcinoma

Abstract

Salivary gland tumours comprise almost 5% of head and neck malignancies. Minor salivary gland tumours account for 10-15% of all salivary gland neoplasms and are usually malignant. The second most common minor salivary gland tumour (12-40% globally) is mucoepidermoid carcinoma. Mucoepidermoid carcinoma is more frequent in females, occurs in the fifth decade of life and is usually found in the parotid gland. However, the palate is a frequent site when it occurs in the minor glands. We report a case of a high-grade variant of mucoepidermoid carcinoma in the right retromolar trigone of a 21-year man which was treated with wide excision of the tumour with a 1.5 cm margin. Reconstruction was done with a buccal fat pad posteriorly with a pedicled lateral tongue flap. Temporal stripping and right coronoidectomy was carried out in case of post-surgical wound contraction. The patient is currently under periodic review. Copyright © 2014 BMJ Publishing Group. All rights reserved.