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Case Reports
. 2025 Aug 27;17(8):e91115.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.91115. eCollection 2025 Aug.

The Vanishing Tumor: Parotid Oncocytoma

Sriya Srujana Paladugu  1 , Abirami Raghunath  1 , Chandru Ravindrakumar  1 , Narayanan Cunnigaiper  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

The Vanishing Tumor: Parotid Oncocytoma

Sriya Srujana Paladugu et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Here, we report a case of a 58-year-old male who presented with a history of right parotid swelling with pain for more than a year. Initially, the swelling was diagnosed as an abscess for which the patient was treated with antibiotics followed by incision and drainage at an outside facility; however, the patient presented with recurrence. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed multiple hypointense lesions, suggesting the possibility of an oncocytic tumor. While fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) was nondiagnostic for malignancy due to an inflammatory background, it had not ruled out malignancy. He underwent a right superficial parotidectomy, along with drainage of purulent material suggestive of an abscess. Histopathological examination showed multifocal oncocytic hyperplasia and adjacent abscess formation; the diagnosis of oncocytoma was made. This case exemplifies the difficulty of diagnosing parotid oncocytomas and highlights how histological analysis can make such a diagnosis possible.

Keywords: benign tumor; fine needle aspiration cytology; histological examination; magnetic resonance imaging; parotid gland oncocytoma; superficial parotidectomy.

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Conflict of interest statement

Human subjects: Informed consent for treatment and open access publication was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Axial T2WI of the patient
The axial T2-weighted image (T2WI) shows multiple T2 hypo- to isointense lesions in the right parotid gland.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Preoperative image of the patient revealing right parotid swelling
Figure 3
Figure 3. HPR analysis revealing small, round nuclei characteristic of oncocytic and large polygonal cells with eosinophilic granular cytoplasm
HPR: Histopathological report.
Figure 4
Figure 4. Postoperative photograph revealing the surgical scar
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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