Current management of the neck in salivary gland carcinomas

Salivary gland cancers include a diverse group of tumours with many histological subtypes which occur in both major and minor salivary glands. As a result of this heterogeneity and different sites of presentation, there have been no randomised controlled trials to evaluate the indications and efficacy of neck treatments by either surgery or radiotherapy for occult or apparent neck node metastases. Neck dissection is an important treatment strategy for neck metastases arising from major and minor salivary gland malignancy as well as being useful for disease staging. However, there is considerable controversy in how to manage the neck in these patients. In this review, we discuss the management of neck metastases relating to malignant salivary gland tumours.