Extramedullary plasmacytoma of the head and neck

Extramedullary plasmacytoma of the head and neck is an uncommon plasma-cell neoplasm that arises most frequently from the soft tissues of the upper airways. Ten patients with extramedullary plasmacytoma of the head and neck received primary external beam megavoltage radiotherapy with doses between 4,000 rad (40 Gy)/29 days and 6,075 rad (60.75 Gy)/42 days. In eight patients the disease was locally controlled, although distant spread of the disease subsequently developed in four of them. Observations of the patients' medical histories, their response to treatment, and patterns of relapse suggest that extramedullary plasmacytoma is a separate clinicopathologic entity from other plasma-cell tumors and is appropriately managed by local irradiation.