Benign lymphoepithelial lesion of minor salivary gland: report of a case involving the palatal mucosa

Abstract

The article describes a rare case of benign lymphoepithelial lesion of the palatal minor salivary gland of a 70-year-old Japanese female patient who suffered from swelling for three months. The serological findings suggested that the patient was affected by Sjögren’s syndrome, although she had no obvious clinical symptoms. CT examinations revealed the presence of a round soft tissue mass in the posterior right side of the hard palate to the soft palate with slight thinning of the bone cortex of the palate. Histologically, the surgically removed mass was composed of a diffuse infiltration of lymphoid cells in the lamina propriae to the submucosal layer. There were many scattered epi-myoepithelial islands throughout the lymphoid background. The histological finding was consistent with that of benign lymphoepithelial lesion of the major salivary gland. The frequency and incidence of benign lymphoepithelial lesions in minor salivary glands and their association with Sjögren’s syndrome were discussed based on 10 cases previously reported in the literature.