[Streptococcus milleri. An early sign of cancer in otorhinolaryngologic patients?]

The Streptococcus milleri group, which also includes S. anginosus, S. intermedius and S. constellatus, is found in the oropharynx and gastrointestinal tract mucosa. Recent isolations of S. milleri DNA sequences have been made from both gastric and oesophageal carcinoma. There are only a few publications on the isolation of viable bacteria and S. milleri DNA, and their role in carcinogenesis, in otorhinolaryngologic malignoma. We present four patients with a cervical abscess and the isolation of S. milleri -group bacteria, without signs of malignancy or other risk factors. After a delay of several months, squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx was diagnosed in three patients and a neck metastasis without primary tumor in the fourth.