Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 24, 2026
Ultrasonographic Evaluation of Salivary Glands for Sjogren's Syndrome: Diagnostic and Monitoring Insights
Published on: October 13, 2023
Rare involvement of submandibular gland by oral squamous cell carcinoma
Tseng-Cheng Chen1, Wu-Chia Lo, Jenq-Yuh Ko
1Department of Otolaryngology, National Taiwan University Hospital and National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan.
Background:
The true involvement of the submandibular gland in primary oral cancer seems quite uncommon.
Methods:
We retrospectively reviewed the pathologic records of 342 patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma who underwent wide excision of primary oral cancer and simultaneous neck dissection from January 2000 to December 2003.
Results:
Of the 383 submandibular glands, only 7 (1.8%) exhibited tumor involvement. Of them, 5 glands were involved by direct extension from the primary tumor. One gland showed local invasion from an adjacent involved lymph node in level I and 1 was from intraglandular lymph node metastasis. All of these 6 tumors with submandibular gland involvement were T4 disease (p = .0003) and the neck nodal status on each was more than N2b (p < .0001).
Conclusion:
The patients with early-stage oral squamous cell carcinoma with preoperative N0 neck may be candidates for preservation of the submandibular gland.
