Mucoepidermoid carcinoma associated with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

As treatment and survival of acute leukemia as well as other types of pediatric cancer improve, the number of second malignancies in these treated patients will increase. Occurrence of these second malignancies in the head and neck is not frequently reported although it is known that radiation treatment, chemotherapy and sometimes the primary lesion itself are risk factors for neoplasia. Malignancies of the parotid gland in the pediatric population are known to be unusual. We discuss a mucoepidermoid carcinoma in a 10-year-old female who 7 years earlier had undergone successful treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia.