Clear cell neoplasms in salivary glands: clearly a diagnostic challenge

Although infrequent, salivary gland tumors with a dominant population of clear staining cells present problems in differential diagnosis. Mucoepidermoid carcinoma, acinic cell adenocarcinoma, "clear cell" oncocytoma, epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma, clear cell adenocarcinoma, and metastatic renal cell carcinoma are considered in the differential diagnosis. This review focuses on this heterogenous group of clear cell neoplasms and attempts to clarify some of the features that help distinguish one neoplasm from another.