Clinicopathological and demographic profile of salivary gland cancer patients from a tertiary care hospital: An institutional experience

Background: Salivary gland cancer is a rare disease of the head-and-neck region. It can arise from either the three major salivary glands or minor salivary glands located throughout the aerodigestive tract. Materials and Methods: This retrospective analysis was performed in the Department of Radiation Oncology in a tertiary care hospital in north India. The records of 49 salivary gland cancer cases over the last 7 years were analyzed for demography and tumor characteristics. Results: In our department, the incidence of salivary gland cancer in the last 7 years was 0.51%. The mean age of presentation of patients with salivary gland cancer was 49.6 years. The male:Female ratio was 2.06:1. Patients presented after a mean symptom duration of 13.6 months in the locally advanced stage. The parotid gland was the most common site of involvement, followed by the submandibular gland. The most common histopathology observed was mucoepidermoid carcinoma and adenoid cystic carcinoma. Other histologies that were found were adenocarcinoma, acinic cell carcinoma, carcinoma ex pleomorphic adenoma, squamous cell carcinoma, mesenchymal tumor, muco-epidermoid carcinoma, salivary duct carcinoma, Hurthle cell carcinoma, malignant melanoma, atypical epitheliodermoid, undifferentiated neoplasm. Conclusion: Due to the heterogeneity of salivary gland tumors, diagnosis and management remains elusive. Multi-centric prospective studies are needed to better understand the disease.