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Diagnosis of Bilateral Tonsil Cancers via Staging PET/CT: Case Report and Review
Edward M Mannina1, Sunanda M Pejavar, Christine M Glastonbury
1Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California San Francisco, 1600 Divisadero Street, P.O. Box 1708, Suite H-1031, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA.
Abstract:
Diagnostic workup of metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma of unknown primary site has traditionally included CT and/or MRI imaging and endoscopic biopsies. Routine bilateral tonsillectomy is highly controversial and the role of PET/CT is evolving, both for identification of potential primary sites and the detection of distant metastases. We report a case of cervical nodal metastasis of squamous cell carcinoma from an unknown primary site, in which dual-modality PET/CT led to the unexpected diagnosis of synchronous bilateral tonsillar cancers. In addition, PET/CT correctly distinguished pulmonary sarcoidosis from metastatic disease in this patient.