Incidence, diagnosis, and classification of salivary gland tumors. Part 1.

The diagnosis of salivary gland tumors is complicated by their relative infrequency, the limited amount of pretreatment information usually available, and the wide range of biologic behaviors seen with different histopathologic types. Most salivary gland neoplasms originate in the parotid, 10-15% arise from the submandibular glands, and the rest occur in the sublingual and minor salivary glands. The probability of a salivary gland neoplasm being malignant is inversely proportional to the size of the gland. The authors discuss two major theories of histogenesis, itemize the various benign and malignant varieties of tumor, discuss the presentation and prognosis for each type, and present a list of factors that influence survival. They also discuss the newest staging system.