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Hepatocellular carcinoma diagnosed by fine‐needle aspiration of the parotid gland
Author(s) -
Romanas Maria M.,
Cherian Rachel,
McGregor Douglas H.,
Wu Yaping,
May Corrie L.,
Baranda Joaquina C.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
diagnostic cytopathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.417
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1097-0339
pISSN - 8755-1039
DOI - 10.1002/dc.20040
Subject(s) - medicine , hepatocellular carcinoma , biopsy , parotid gland , fine needle aspiration , metastasis , pathology , lesion , carcinoma , autopsy , radiology , cancer
Hepatocellular carcinoma rarely metastasizes to the salivary glands. We report a case of a 47‐yr‐old man who presented with a right parotid lesion that was diagnosed by fine‐needle aspiration (FNA) biopsy as a metastatic lesion suggestive of hepatocellular carcinoma with similar findings in a subsequent intraoral incisional biopsy. The patient's serum α‐fetoprotein level was within normal limits at the time of diagnosis. CT scan revealed a mass in the liver, but a liver biopsy was not performed. The patient deteriorated rapidly and died about 4 mo later. An autopsy confirmed the presence of hepatocellular carcinoma with distant metastases to unusual sites, including the parotid gland, orbit, and calvarium, bypassing more common sites such as the lungs. This is the second known reported case in which hepatocellular carcinoma presented as a salivary gland metastasis. In both cases the diagnosis was made by FNA biopsy, illustrating the utility of this method for diagnosing uncommon metastatic salivary gland lesions. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2004;30:401–405. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.