Submandibular gland metastasis of breast carcinoma: a case report and review of the literature

We report a female patient who developed a solitary metastasis in the submandibular salivary gland 2 years after primary surgery for a grade II T1 N0 M0 breast cancer. A review of the literature shows that metastases in the submandibular gland are uncommon but when they arise the site of the primary tumour is more likely to be distant than in the head and neck region. In female patients, breast tumours predominate.This work was supported by the Italian Association for Cancer Research (Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro, AIRC, Milano)