Genomic alterations in Warthin tumors of the parotid gland

Despite the fact that Warthin tumors are the second most common type of benign salivary gland tumors, information regarding genetic alterations is extremely limited, and the tumorigenesis of these tumors has not been elucidated. The present results of the largest series of 30 tumors analyzed by comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) to date confirmed previous genetic findings and identified significant new candidate regions. The most commonly observed alterations were deletions of the short arm of chromosome 8, followed by deletions on 9p. Further representative changes were deletions on 16p and 22q with the minimal overlapping region at 16p12p13.1 and 22q12.1q12.3. Moreover, we indicated two different patterns of chromosomal aberrations. One group harbors deletions on 8p partly apparent with deletions on 9q, 11q 15q, 16p and 22. The second group shows gains on 22, partly apparent with gains on 1p and 20q and deletions on 9p. This leads to the assumption that Warthin tumors, in particular those with a high number of alterations, can be divided into two different genetic groups based on the pattern of numerical chromosomal aberrations. Further studies should address whether these subgroups also reflect a different clinical presentation.