Abstract
Almost all metastases to the head and neck area from the body's internal organs are dealt with by distant metastases, and their prognoses are poor. We clinically examined 35 cases of these metastases in patients that visited our department. Primary lesions were from the lungs (10 cases), breasts (six cases), kidneys (four cases), and thoracic esophagus (three cases). There were also two cases from each of the colon, pancreas, liver, and stomach, and one case from each of the prostate, gall bladder, mediastinum, and retroperitoneum. With regard to the state of the primary lesions, 23 cases were untreated and 12 cases had been treated on the first visit. With regard to the location of the metastasis, 28 cases were in the cervical lymph node, and 13 cases were in locations other than the head and neck area.
Five cases had undergone surgical resection. Surgical resection on head and neck area metastasis is rare, and the decision as to whether to refer a patient in this situation should be considered case by case.
