Kimura disease, or eosinophilic granuloma of the soft tissue, is a chronic inflammatory granuloma arising from the subcutaneous soft tissues or lymph nodes of the head and neck. We report the case of a 51-year-old male patient with Kimura disease who presented with a bulky left preauricular mass. The peripheral blood eosinophil count and serum levels of IgE and antibodies against candida antigens were elevated. Contrast-enhanced MRI revealed involvement of the parotid gland, and the patient was treated by resection of the bulky mass and of the superficial lobe of the parotid gland. Histopathological examination of the resected specimen showed proliferation of the lymphoid follicles with marked eosinophilic infiltration in the lesion, and we made the diagnosis of Kimura disease. After the surgery, the peripheral blood eosinophil count as well as the serum levels of IgE and antibodies against candida antigens decreased, with no evidence of relapse for at least three years after the surgery. Our findings suggest that type I allergy to Candida albicans plays an important role in the development of Kimura disease.
