Nasopharyngeal mucoepidermoid carcinoma - a common entity at an uncommon location

Mucoepidermoid carcinomas mostly occur in the major salivary glands, the minor salivary glands of oral cavity and in the lacrimal glands. These tumours rarely occur in the sino-nasal tract. When they occur in the sino-nasal tract, the most frequent site is the maxillary antrum, followed by the nasal cavity, the nasopharynx and the ethmoidal sinuses. As per review of literature, nasopharyngeal mucoepidermoid carcinomas account for 0.6% of salivary gland tumours and 4.8% of mucoepidermoid carcinomas. Extensive literature search revealed 21 cases of nasopharyngeal mucoepidermoid carcinomas reported till date. These cases showed an age incidence ranging from 20 to 60 years with a female preponderance. In contrast to nasopharyngeal carcinomas, these tumours show low positivity rates for Ebstein-Barr virus serological test. Histochemical positivity for mucin may be demonstrated in the glandular and mucinous components of these tumours. High grade mucoepidermoid carcinoma of nasopharynx is treated with surgical excision combined with radiotherapy and is associated with poor survival. Therefore, early diagnosis and prompt treatment are of utmost importance. This case report highlights the rare occurrence of a high grade nasopharyngeal muco-epidermoid carcinoma in a 70-year-old male and is presented for its unusual occurrence in the nasopharynx which is the most infrequent location for this lesion.