Perinatal salivary gland tumours (embryomas).

Epithelial salivary gland tumours presenting in the first month of life (perinatal tumours) are exclusively of major salivary gland origin and predominantly of the parotid gland. Approximately 25 per cent of these rare tumours have been histologically and/or biologically malignant. Except for an occasional pleomorphic and monomorphic adenoma, the majority of the tumours are proliferations suggesting a tumourous arrest of maturation of the salivary gland anlage, hence their designation as embryomas. A case report of an embryoma of the parotid is presented, accompanied by a review of the literature.