CLINICAL CASES   

Otorinolaringologia 2002 June;52(2):79-83

Copyright © 2009 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: Italian

Metastatic involvement of the parotid gland as the first symptom of renal light cell carcinoma

Ieva G., Bovo R., Campolieti G., Di Franco R., Lunghi M., Perissinotto M., Lunghi F.

Divisione ORL Ospedale Civile, Monselice (Padova)

Rarely, the first symptom of kidney cancer may be represented by a metastatic involvement of the parotid glao. To this extent, only 17 cases have been reported in medical literature. The clinical case of a 61-year-old male subject who was referred because of a left parotid mass is reported. A fine needle biopsy was performed. Histology was suggestive of an oxyphil parotid neoplasm and a pathologist suggested that the possibility of metastatic involvement from a light kidney carcinoma should be ruled out. Kidney ultrasound showed a 9 cm, solid mass in the right kidney. After further investigations, (angiography, thoracic and abdominal tomography) the patient underwent left parotidectomy and right nephrectomy. The pathologist’s final diagnosis was primary light kidney carcinoma with metastatic parotid involvement. The Authors suggest that when evaluating a parotid mass, the possibility that the mass is a metastasis from a kidney tumor should always been considered. In this respect when studying a parotid tumor, a kidney ultrasound should always be performed. In any case, parotid immuno-histology with reference to vimentin, cytokeratin and CEA might help in making the differential diagnosis between renal metastasis and light-cell parotid cancer.