Squamous cell carcinoma of the parotid gland is rare. Metastasis to the parotid gland occurs very rarely in oral carcinomas. This report describes a case of squamous cell carcinoma of the parotid gland with suspected metastasis from the maxillary alveolus.
The patient was a 72-year-old woman who presented at the Department of Dentistry and Oral Surgery, Ishikawa Prefectural Central Hospital because of an ulcer in the right side of the maxillary gingiva. Clinical and radiographic examinations showed a lesion extending to the right side of the maxillary sinus. However, the parotid glands showed no evidence of the lesion. A biopsy was performed, and the histopathological diagnosis was squamous cell carcinoma. The tumor was resected after chemotherapy and radiation. A mass in the left parotid gland appeared 4 months after operation. Fine needle aspiration cytology was performed, and the histopathological diagnosis was squamous cell carcinoma. The mass was clinically diagnosed as a metastatic tumor and underwent resection. There was evidence of tumor recurrence 4 months after resection of the parotid gland tumor, and radiation therapy was performed. However, the patient died of pneumonia 1 and a half years after presentation to our department.
