Histopathologic review of salivary gland tumors in childhood

During the 58-year period from 1928 through 1986, 80 patients 18 years of age or younger were treated or seen in consultation at Children's Hospital, Boston, for an epithelial or nonepithelial tumor of salivary gland origin. Using established criteria, ten (40%) of the 25 epithelial tumors were pleomorphic adenomas and the remaining tumors were classified as histologically malignant growths including mucoepidermoid carcinoma (n = 6), acinic cell carcinoma (n = 5), and adenocarcinoma most likely of duct cell origin (n = 2). Two other carcinomas presented as congenital parotid salivary gland tumors in newborns and were considered to have biphasic composition including both epithelial and myoepithelial cells, with the latter type predominating. There was only one tumor-related death due to metastases among the 15 children with malignant epithelial tumors (7%); four other patients experienced a local recurrence of tumor (27%). Of the 55 nonepithelial tumors, capillary hemangioma was the most common and showed distinct predilection for female infants with localization in the left parotid gland. The histologic spectrum of primary salivary gland tumors in infancy and childhood is distinctive and merits careful correlation with therapeutic strategies.