[Mucoepidermoid cancer of the larynx. Case report and review of the literature].

Mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) is classified among the salivary gland tumours and is most commonly found in the parotid gland. It rarely occurs in the larynx. There have been only 87 cases of laryngeal MEC reported in the literature. We report on an MEC of the vocal cord in a 75-year-old man, with a thickened right vocal cord without any loss of movement. The initial diagnosis was squamous cell carcinoma. One year after radiotherapy a tumour recurrence developed. Because the patient refused to laryngectomise, a tumour resection with the CO2 laser was performed twice. To date, the patient has been free from disease for more than five years. The true incidence of this type of neoplasm could be higher than is believed because of its frequent misdiagnosis as squamous cell carcinoma.