A study on seventy-eight cases of parotid tumor

We reviewed 78 cases of parotid gland tumors treated at our hospital over the past 2 years and 5 months. Benign tumors were observed in 65 patients (36 males and 29 females), and malignant tumors were observed in 13 patients (4 males and 9 females). The average patient age was 50 years old for the cases with benign tumors and 65 years old for the cases with malignant tumors. The most common benign tumor was pleomorphic adenoma, followed by Warthin's tumor. The most common malignant tumor was mucoepidermoid carcinoma. The sensitivity/specificity/accuracy of preoperative fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNA) were 27.3%, 96.8%, and 86.5%, respectively, while those of MRI were 84.6%, 86.6%, and 85.9% when an unsharp margin or a low signal intensity on T2-weighed MRI were regarded as malignant findings. As surgical treatments, extirpation or a partial lobectomy were mainly applied for benign tumors. On the other hand, a partial lobectomy or total parotidectomy with facial nerve resection were selected for malignant tumors, except in 3 cases that only underwent an open biopsy. Postoperative facial nerve palsy was observed in 6 (9.2%) out of 65 benign tumor cases and 5 (50%) out of 10 malignant tumor cases treated with radical surgery, but all the patients except for one case with parotid cancer recovered in 1 to 5 months. Postoperative first bite syndrome was seen in 3 cases requiring deep lobe tumor removal. When the patient group with Warthin's tumor was compared with that of pleomorphic adenoma, a significantly higher age, a male predominance, and a higher smoking rate were observed, similar to the findings of previous reports. Not only imaging findings and FNA results, but also patient age, sex, and smoking habits are thought to be important for discriminating between Warthin's tumor and pleomorphic adenoma.