[Limited function of the large salivary glands of the head. A new aspect for the etiopathogenesis of cancers of the oral cavity, oropharynx and hypopharynx].

Function and morphology of the major salivary glands were investigated in patients suffering from carcinomas of the oral cavity, the oropharynx and the hypopharynx. In comparison to the results obtained from healthy control subjects, the tumour patients showed significantly decreased flow-rates of parotid and submandibular saliva. Furthermore the excretion of IgA, lysozyme and total protein and the pH-value in both, the parotid and the submandibular saliva of the patients was significantly lowered. The histological feature of the salivary glands of the patients was characterized by interstitial deposition of fat. In several cases a swelling and a degranulation of the acinar cells was observed additionally. Other patients showed an atrophy of the acinar cells. Sometimes an inflammatory reaction could also be noted in the submandibular and/or the parotid glands of patients suffering from head and neck cancer. The decreased salivary gland function reflects a reduction of the protective mechanisms of the oral cavity and the pharynx. Additionally it enables an increased penetration of environmental carcinogens through the mucous surface, and therefore has to be discussed as a factor for the etiology of carcinomas of the upper aerodigestive tract.