[Pharyngeal tuberculosis as a differential diagnosis to carcinoma]

The differential diagnosis of pharyngeal tumors includes malignomas as well as chronic inflammatory processes. Squamous cell carcinoma is the most prevalent malignoma of the pharynx, representing about 90% of all malignomas of the head and neck. Malignant lymphomas, lymphoepithelial tumors (Schmincke's tumor) and anaplastic carcinomas are less prevalent. Amelanotic melanoma, rhabdomyosarcoma and extramedullary plasmocytoma are rare malignomas of the pharynx. Infectious diseases may also be a cause of pharyngeal tumors which have been reported to be associated with mycobacterial infections, syphilis, leproma, malleus and anthrax. Sarcoidosis and Wegener's granulomatosis are chronic inflammatory diseases of unknown etiology. We report a case of a 65-year-old female with an 11-year history of a slowly progressing tumor of the nasopharynx who had been admitted to hospital with suspicion of a malignoma.