1999 年 45 巻 8 号 p. 500-502
Most acinic cell carcinomas arise from the parotid gland, and involvement of the minor salivary gland is rare. We describe a case of acinic cell carcinoma of the minor salivary gland that was successfully diagnosed by cytologic examination. The patient was an 87-year-old man with a painless mass in the left buccal mucosa. The mass measured 25×20×10mm and was covered with normal mucosa except in the center, where a small ulcer was observed. On palpation, the mass was elastic hard. Computed tomography revealed a relatively well demarcated lesion on the buccal aspect of the maxilla. Cytologically, smears taken from the ulcer consisted of large, overlapping cells with abundant foamy cytoplasm and a large nucleus containing a distinct nucleolus. The cells were sporadically arranged in an acinous pattern. The cytologic diagnosis was acinic cell carcinoma. The tumor was removed en bloc, and there has been no evidence of recurrence or metastasis as of 1 year 8 months postoperatively. The histopathologic diagnosis of the surgical specimen was consistent with the cytologic diagnosis.