Retrospective study of 149 cases of salivary gland carcinoma in a Spanish hospital population

BACKGROUND: The clinical and histological characteristics of salivary gland tumors vary widely, complicating their diagnosis and management, and major differences have been recorded in the distribution of histopathological diagnoses among different countries. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This retrospective study reviewed the demographic (age, sex) and clinicopathological (pathology diagnosis and localization) characteristics of cases diagnosed with primary SGC between June 1992 and May 2014 in the Pathology Department of the 12 de Octubre Hospital of Madrid. Diagnoses were recorded according to the 2005 WHO classification. RESULTS: The study included 149 SCG patients, aged between 11 and 94 yrs, with mean age at onset of 55.56 yrs and peak incidence in the eighth decade of life. The male:female ratio was 1.01. The parotid gland was the most frequently involved (75.2%). The most frequent carcinoma was mucoepidermoid carcinoma (24.2%), followed by acinic cell carcinoma (15.4%). CONCLUSIONS: The demographic and histopathological characteristics of patients with salivary gland carcinomas in Spain, reported here for the first time, are broadly similar to those found in other countries. Key words:Salivary gland carcinomas, descriptive, salivary glands, salivary gland tumors, head and neck cancer, oral cancer, Spain.