Hypervascular mucoepidermoid caricinoma of the palate

Salivary mucoepidermoid carcinoma is the most common malignant salivary gland tumor. Low or intermediate grade tumors are slow-growing and can be mistaken for benign lesions on both physical exam and imaging studies. We present a case of hypervascular mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the hard palate that was initially thought to represent a benign vascular lesion. To our knowledge, only two prior cases of hypervascular mucoepidermoid carcinoma have been previously reported. This is the first case showing the MRI features of this tumor and its temporal evolution on CT over several years. Our patient ultimately underwent angiographic tumor embolization so that her lesion could be safely biopsied without significant bleeding risk. We present this as a potential diagnostic pitfall and explain how the treatment for hypervascular mucoepidermoid carcinoma varies compared to conventional tumors.