Extramedullary plasmacytoma of the tongue: A case report

Abstract

Background: Tongue extramedullary plasmacytoma is a very rare pathology. Despite rare cases, extramedullary plasmacytoma should be considered as a differential diagnosis in case of a mass in the tongue. A total of 19 cases were reported with EMP in English literature along with the case we will address. It is characterized by a monoclonal neoplastic proliferation of plasma cells in the absence of multiple myeloma (MM). Histopathology and immunohistochemistry are very important for the diagnosis and differential diagnosis. Case presentation: The case we will describe is an 80-year-old lady from Albania who presents with a vegetative lesion in the form of a thick plate on the dorsal part of the tongue with dimensions 6 X 5 X 1.5 cm. A material of 0.5 cm diameter was taken from the lesion for the biopsy. After histopathological examination, immunohistochemical examinations, and after correlations with laboratory, clinical and imaging data, the diagnosis of extramedullary plasmacytoma of the tongue was reached. The patient underwent radiotherapy treatment. Conclusions: EMP is a rare tumor, accounting for 3% of plasma cell neoplasms and <1% of all head and neck tumors. The diagnosis of EMP, in this case, was reached with biopsy, immunohistochemistry, and the correlation with laboratory and imaging data. We will show the importance of biopsy along with immunohistochemistry in the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of extramedullary plasmocytoma of the tongue. Keywords: plasmacytoma; immunohistochemistry; biopsy; plasma cell. Abbreviations: EMP: Extramedullary plasmacytoma; MM: Multiple myeloma; Cm: centimeter