A case of oncocytic carcinoma arising from the submandibular gland with bilateral multiple cervical lymph node metastases

Abstract This article discusses a case of bilateral multiple cervical lymph node metastases of oncocytic carcinoma—an extremely rare neoplasm of the salivary glands—that was found in a 71-year-old Japanese female patient who presented with a painless swelling in the bilateral submandibular regions. Computed tomography demonstrated enlarged bilateral multiple lymph nodes. Multiple metastases to bilateral cervical lymph nodes were clinically suspected, and bilateral neck dissections were performed. The tumor tissue adjoined the submandibular gland with a thin fibrous connective tissue capsule. Histologically, the tumor was predominantly composed of large, round to polyhedral cells with fine granular eosinophilic cytoplasm, which were arranged in solid sheets, islands and cords. Ultrastructural analysis revealed numerous mitochondria with abnormal shapes packed in the cytoplasm of the neoplastic cells. The tumor was diagnosed as oncocytic carcinoma of the submandibular gland with bilateral multiple cervical lymph node metastases. The tumor developed neither recurrence nor distant metastasis for eight years after the operation.