2000 Volume 46 Issue 12 Pages 778-780
Metastatic submandibular gland tumors rarely arise from nonsalivary neoplasms. A 62-year-old man found to have small-cell lung carcinoma 1 month previously was referred to our department because of a painless enlargement of the right submandibular gland. An adenoid cystic carcinoma was suspected on the basis of the results of aspiration biopsy. Histpathological examination after partial lung resection and radical neck dissection showed features of small-cell carcinoma, indicating thatthe lesion had metastasized from small-cell lung carcinoma. There was no evidence of local recurrence in the lung or cervical region. However, the patient died of liver metastasis 22 months after presentation. A review of the Englishlanguage literature revealed only two previously reported cases of metastasis from small-cell lung carcinoma to the submandibular gland. To our knowledge, our case is the first to be reported in Japan.
