Myoepithelial carcinoma of the head and neck: A report of 23 cases and literature review

Abstract

Objective: Myoepithelial carcinoma (MC) of head and neck is extremely rare. The relevant literature consists only of case reports, and consequently many of its clinical characteristics and optimal treatment strategies remain unknown.Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 23 patients diagnosed with MC of the head and neck between 1991 and 2005. Most patients were treated with surgery and postoperative radiotherapy or adjuvant chemotherapy. The recurrence, survival and local control rates were evaluated.Results: Thirteen (56.5%) patients were male and 10 were female with a median age of 52 years (range: 15-77 years). The parotid was the most frequently involved site (39.1%). Eighteen patients underwent surgery as their initial treatment and nine of these received postoperative radiotherapy. The 3-year and 5-year overall survival rates were 59% and 31.8%, respectively. The local relapse rate was 30.4% (6/23); eight patients had a distal metastasis, and the lung was the most common site. There was no difference in the local control and survival rates between patients who received surgery alone and those with additional postoperative radiotherapy (p =0.059). Two patients had partial response after chemotherapy with dacarbazine.

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Myoepithelial carcinoma or epithelioid sarcoma – A rare diagnosis with poor prognosis. A case report and review of literature

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“…Although our patient did not respond to conventional chemotherapy regimens used in soft tissue sarcoma, others have reported some favorable responses with doxorubicin-based chemotherapy. 22,23 Platinum-based regimens commonly used in carcinomas were also reported to be active. 24,25 In view of the lack of prospective data, patients with myoepithelial tumors should be offered participation in clinical trials of novel agents.…”