Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2008 Mar;8(3):393-402.
doi: 10.1586/14737140.8.3.393.

Systemic therapies for recurrent and/or metastatic salivary gland cancers

Affiliations
Review

Systemic therapies for recurrent and/or metastatic salivary gland cancers

Emanuela Vattemi et al. Expert Rev Anticancer Ther. 2008 Mar.

Abstract

Salivary gland carcinomas are rare cancers, comprising 1-5% of head and neck cancers. They represent a morphologically and clinically diverse group of tumors. The most commonly histopathologic types are mucoepidermoid cancer, adenoid cystic cancer and adenocarcinomas. Malignant salivary gland tumors generally present as painless, slow-growing tumors that are indistinguishable from benign tumors. Surgery is the principal treatment and is curative in early stage. Radiation therapy should be considered in most patients after surgical resection. Chemotherapy is reserved for palliative treatment of metastatic disease but results are disappointing. Recent studies have investigated the role of targeted therapies in a palliative setting. Multicentre cooperative group clinical trials are required to assess novel therapies to maximize patient resources in this uncommon tumor.

PubMed Disclaimer

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources