Palatal Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma — MFDS Part 1 MCQ

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ModerateOral PathologyPalatal Mucoepidermoid CarcinomaMFDS Part 1

A 60-year-old has a firm, slow-growing, painless palatal swelling with focal surface ulceration. Biopsy shows a salivary gland neoplasm composed of cystic and solid areas containing mucous, epidermoid and intermediate cells. What is the most likely diagnosis?

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Correct answer: B — Mucoepidermoid carcinoma

The diagnosis is **mucoepidermoid carcinoma**. Its characteristic histology comprises an admixture of mucous, epidermoid and intermediate cells, often forming both cystic and solid areas. Palatal minor salivary glands are a recognised intraoral site. Pleomorphic adenoma instead shows epithelial and myoepithelial elements in a variably myxoid or chondroid stroma. Necrotising sialometaplasia is a benign, self-limiting infarctive process that may show squamous metaplasia but not this neoplastic three-cell population. Conventional squamous cell carcinoma lacks the characteristic mucous and intermediate cell components. Adenoid cystic carcinoma is typically composed of basaloid cells in cribriform, tubular or solid patterns and is often associated with perineural invasion.

Reference: Sakamoto S, Kikuchi K. Expanding the cytological and architectural spectrum of mucoepidermoid carcinoma: The key to solving diagnostic problems in morphological variants. Seminars in Diagnostic Pathology. 2024;41(4):182-189. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38609754/