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Review
. 2023 Jun;17(2):285-291.
doi: 10.1007/s12105-023-01541-1. Epub 2023 May 15.

Proceedings of the North American Society of Head and Neck Pathology Companion Meeting, New Orleans, LA, March 12, 2023: Classification of Salivary Gland Tumors: Remaining Controversial Issues?

Affiliations
Review

Proceedings of the North American Society of Head and Neck Pathology Companion Meeting, New Orleans, LA, March 12, 2023: Classification of Salivary Gland Tumors: Remaining Controversial Issues?

Alena Skalova et al. Head Neck Pathol. 2023 Jun.

Abstract

The salivary gland section in the 5th edition of the World Health Organization Classification of Head and Neck Tumours includes a description of several new entities. In addition, numerous tumor variants were described and new concepts proposed, most of which have been based on recent molecular discoveries. However, there are still some controversial issues that remain to be resolved, and some of them are discussed in this review.

Keywords: Carcinosarcoma; Intraductal carcinoma; Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms; Mucinous adenocarcinoma; Oncocytic carcinoma; Salivary gland; World health organization classification.

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Conflict of interest statement

All authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest or non-financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Intraductal carcinoma (IDC). Intercalated duct subtype IDC (A) which is SOX10 positive (B) and most commonly harbors NCOA4::RET. Apocrine subtype IDC (C) which is androgen receptor positive (D) and may harbor variable gene mutations in PI3K/Akt pathway
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Intraductal carcinoma (IDC). Oncocytic IDC which resembles intercalated duct IDC but has more solid growth, prominent oncocytic cells, and more often it harbors a TRIM33::RET (A). In most cases of IDC a continuous layer of myoepithelial cells can be demonstrated by immunohistochemistry (p63 protein) (B). IDC with a loss of the myoepithelial layer and focus of microinvasion associated with desmoplastic reaction (C). Intercalated duct subtype IDC with NCOA4::RET fusion with widespread invasion and regional lymph node metastasis (D)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN) and mucinous adenocarcinoma (MA). IPMN is a low-grade papillary-cystic tumor composed of mucinous columnar cells and harbors recurrent AKT1 p.E17K mutation in most cases (A). IPMN lacks surrounding myoepithelial or basal cells (immunohistochemical staining, p63 protein) (B). Most MA is cystic and papillary, with pushing invasive borders (C). Occasional cases demonstrate signet ring or colloid (tumor cells floating in pools of mucin) patterns (D)
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Oncocytic carcinoma and salivary carcinosarcoma (SCS). Oncocytic variant of mucoepidermoid carcinoma (A). Oncocytic variant of salivary duct carcinoma (B). SCS is characterized by variable combination of malignant epithelial and sarcomatous tumor components, which may develop from a pre-existent pleomorphic adenoma (PA) or de novo (C, D)

References

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