Primary adenomyoepithelioma of the sellar region: a case report

Small nests of an ectopic salivary gland tissue are clinically insignificant and they are an incidental finding at microscopic examination in various organs at autopsy. Intracranially, they are suggested to be the origin of extremely rare sellar tumors that bear a marked resemblance to tumors of the salivary gland. We report a case of 38-year-old man who presented with a sellar mass and partial visual loss. The tumor was surgically removed and microscopic examination showed a lesion consistent with adenomyoepithelioma as known in salivary gland pathology. After the surgery, the patient was administered substitution treatment for pan-hypopituitarism and diabetes insipidus. The neoplasm recurred 14 years after surgery in the same location. Transfrontal decompressive operation was followed by a transnasal procedure during which gross total removal of the tumor was achieved. The recurrent tumor displayed an identical morphology to the initial neoplasm; the only difference was an increase in the proliferative activity of the neoplastic cells in the recurrent growth. Six months after the surgery for the recurrent neoplasm, there are no clinical and radiological signs of tumor progression.