[Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the parotid gland]

Most of the primary malignant lymphomas of the salivary glands originate from the parotid gland. We presented two patients who were admitted with a painless mass in the parotid region and diagnosed to have a lymphoma. Physical examination of a 66-year-old male patient showed a relatively mobile, painless, and firm mass at the inferior aspect of the right parotid gland. Ultrasonography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were performed and a needle biopsy was obtained from the solid lesion extending from the right parotid superficial lobe to the medial deep lobe. Pathological examination revealed large B-cell lymphoma. The patient was treated according to the CHOP chemotherapy protocol. The second patient had undergone surgery for orbital lymphoma and received CHOP chemotherapy. On physical examination, there was a painless mass in the parotid cauda on the left and a subcutaneous lymph node, 0.5 x 1 cm in size, inferior to the parotid cauda. Computed tomography and MRI showed an irregularly contoured solid lesion, 2 x 1 cm in size, in the posteroinferior aspect of the superficial lobe. Lymph node biopsy yielded a diagnosis of small cell malignant lymphoma. The patient was referred to the medical oncology department for staging, further investigation, and planning of the treatment.