Unicystic variant of low grade mucoepidermoid carcinoma: A rare case report

Abstract

The most common malignant neoplasm of salivary gland origin is mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC), and it comprises of about 5-10% of all salivary gland neoplasm. It is mostly seen in major salivary glands (54%) and two third of them occurs in the parotid gland, and 46% is seen in minor salivary glands. Histo-morphological complexity of MEC has a constellation of varying amount of epidermoid cells, goblet cells, intermediate cells and mucocytes. It is graded histopathologically based on the relative proportion of cell type, cystic spaces, degree of tumor invasion, anaplasia, mitotic rates and presence or absence of necrosis into low-grade, Intermediate grade and high-grade. In the literature, several variants of MEC such as conventional, clear cell, warthin-like, sclerosing and unicystic variant have been reported. The aim of the current case report is to present a low-grade variant of unicystic MEC which is rare, but a distinctive tumor affecting the salivary gland. Till date, to the best of our knowledge only one case has been reported.