Mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the parotid gland: Twenty-year experience in treatment and outcomes

Head Neck. 2021 Sep;43(9):2663-2671. doi: 10.1002/hed.26735. Epub 2021 May 1.

Abstract

Background: Parotid gland mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) has published five-year cancer-specific survival (CSS) rates of 77%-97%, with variance related to grade.

Methods: Patients receiving primary surgery for parotid gland MEC from 1995 to 2014 at a tertiary medical center underwent clinical review, histopathologic review, and cytogenetic analysis. Survival outcomes were evaluated.

Results: Among 58 patients, T/N/M classification was as follows: T1 in 35 patients, T2 in 14, T4a in 9, N0 in 53, N1 in 2, N2b in 3. Histologic grade was low in 27, intermediate in 17, and high in 12 patients with 98% MAML2 positivity. All patients underwent parotidectomy, and seven patients received adjuvant radiation therapy. CSS was 100% at 5 years and 94.1% at 10 and 15 years. Two patients experienced locoregional recurrence.

Conclusions: Treatment with adequate surgical resection and adjuvant radiation therapy for high-grade or advanced-stage tumors yields excellent survival, independent of clinical stage or pathologic grade.

Keywords: MAML2; mucoepidermoid carcinoma; parotid gland; parotidectomy; salivary gland.

MeSH terms

  • Carcinoma, Mucoepidermoid* / pathology
  • Carcinoma, Mucoepidermoid* / surgery
  • Humans
  • Neoplasm Recurrence, Local
  • Neoplasm Staging
  • Parotid Gland / pathology
  • Parotid Gland / surgery
  • Parotid Neoplasms* / pathology
  • Parotid Neoplasms* / surgery
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Salivary Gland Neoplasms* / pathology
  • Treatment Outcome