Abstract
Malignant tumors of the parotid gland are classified into various histological types. Their diagnosis and treatment, and prognosis including QOL are affected by histological variations and management of facial nerves.
During the 10-year period from 1997 to 2006, 54 cases were treated at Aichi Cancer Center. According to histological grade, the 5 and 10-year disease-specific survival of resected 49 cases were 86% and 79% for low and intermediate grade, and 48% and 31% for high grade, respectively. Prognostic factors were evaluated using Cox proportional hazard models. T and N of UICC TNM classifications and histological grades were significant prognostic factors.
Immediate facial nerve reconstruction is very demanding after a total parotidectomy. Under such conditions, we reconstructed facial nerves using vascularized sural nerves with free lateral gastrocnemius muscle flap.
We evaluated the clinicopathological features of mucoepidermoid carcinoma translocated gene 1-mastermind-like gene family gene fusion, and this gene transcript may be specific to mucoepidermoid carcinoma and associated with a distinct clinicopathological mucaepidermoid carcinoma subset that exhibits an indolent clinical course.
In order to improve the prognosis and QOL, new approaches such as molecular biology, corpuscular radiotherapy and targeted therapy should be evaluated under a multi-institutional trial due to low incidence and histological variety of malignant tumors of the parotid gland.
