1999 Volume 1999 Issue Supplement102 Pages 105-108
Synovial sarcomas of the head and neck are extremely rare. A review of the literature revealed only 8 cases of synovial sarcomas in the head and neck in Japan.
We experienced the case a patient with a synovial sarcoma of the tongue. The patient was a 47- year-old man whose chief complaint was pain of the tongue. MRI revealed a high intensity mass in the tongue measuring 6×5×4 cm in size. The initial histological diagnosis based on a biopsy specimen was an acinic cell carcinoma. Chemotherapy turned out to be ineffective, and surgical resection was then performed. A postoperative microscopic examination of the tumor showed both epithelioid cells and spindle cells. Immunohistochemically, the epithelioid cells were keratin immuno-positive, whereas the spindle cells were vimentin immunoreactive. On the basis of these findings, the tumor was diagnosed as the biphasic type of synovial sarcoma. The patient underwent postoperative radiotherapy, and has had no recurrence or metastasis at present.
