Salivary duct carcinoma: report of a case and review of the literature

Summary Salivary duct carcinoma is a rare primary tumour of the salivary glands arising most frequently in the parotid gland. It has a male preponderance and occurs most often in patients over the age of 50 years. Its distinctive histological features include dilated ducts containing cells arranged in cribriform, papillary or solid patterns often with central necrosis and reminiscent of intraduct carcinoma of the breast. These features are associated with an obvious invasive component. It is an aggressive neoplasm and may metastasize widely, causing death in a high proportion of cases.