[Fifty years' retrospection of systemic study on salivary gland tumors]

Salivary gland tumors are a group of the most common tumors in the oral and maxillofacial region with obvious characteristics of clinical, histopathologic, and therapeutic aspects. During the past 50 years, our research group performed a systemic study on salivary gland tumors including imaging diagnosis, fine needle aspiration cytology, FT-mid-IR fiber optics spectroscopy, histopathologic features and biological behaviour of the tumors, functional parotid surgery, and (125)I seed implant branchytherapy. More reasonable principles of management for various types of the tumors were put forward based on the histopathologic features of the tumors. The surgical techniques were modified and the postoperative complications were reduced obviously. Thus, the quality of life of the patients was improved greatly.