Dedifferentiated acinic cell carcinoma of the parotid gland: A distinct rarely described entity

• Published in: Human pathology Vol. 28; no. 7; pp. 869 - 873
• Main Authors: Henley, John D, Geary, William A, Jackson, Cynthia L, Wu, C.Daniel, Cnepp, Douglas R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Elsevier Inc 01.07.1997; Elsevier
• Subjects: acinic cell carcinoma; Biological and medical sciences; Carcinoma, Acinar Cell - genetics; Carcinoma, Acinar Cell - metabolism; Carcinoma, Acinar Cell - pathology; dedifferentiated; dedifferentiation; DNA, Neoplasm; Genes, p53; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Otorhinolaryngology. Stomatology; p53; parotid gland; Parotid Neoplasms - genetics; Parotid Neoplasms - metabolism; Parotid Neoplasms - pathology; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Polymorphism, Single-Stranded Conformational; salivary gland; Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 - metabolism; Tumors; Upper respiratory tract, upper alimentary tract, paranasal sinuses, salivary glands: diseases, semeiology; salivary gland; ACC; dedifferentiated; DACC; PAS; PCR-SSCP; dedifferentiation; acinic cell carcinoma; parotid gland; p53; Human; Immunohistochemistry; Parotid gland; Male; Malignant tumor; Case study; Polymerase chain reaction; Pathology; Acinar cell carcinoma; Salivary gland disease; TP53 Gene; C-Onc gene; ENT disease; Adult; Molecular biology; Protooncogene; Tumor suppressor gene
• ISSN: 0046-8177; 1532-8392
• DOI: 10.1016/S0046-8177(97)90164-7

A case of dedifferentiated acinic cell carcinoma of the parotid gland is presented. A 46-year-old man presented with a parotid gland mass. At surgery the tumor was found adherent to the temporal bone and cervical adenopathy was present. Treatment included radical parotidectomy and intraoperative radiotherapy. Histologically, the tumor was a composite of a usual low-grade acinic cell carcinoma and high-grade, poorly differentiated carcinoma. Cervical lymph node metastases were composed entirely of high-grade carcinoma. Immunohistochemically, both low- and high-grade malignant components were negative for p53 oncoprotein expression. Moreover, polymerase chain reaction and nonisotopic single-stranded conformational polymorphism analyses were consistent with a germ line configuration of the p53 gene, exons five through eight, in both low- and high-grade elements of the tumor. The literature on this unusual variant of acinic cell carcinoma is reviewed.