A CLINICOPATHOLOGIC EVALUATION AND ANALYSIS OF 56 CASES OF MUCOEPIDERMOID CARCINOMA USING GRADING SYSTEMS

Mucoepidermoid carcinoma grading systems

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) is the most 
common malignant epithelial salivary gland tumour and 
histologically it presents with varying proportions of epidermoid, 
mucous, and intermediate cells. This study aims to describe the 
clinicohistological features of MEC managed at Lagos University 
Teaching Hospital (LUTH) and compare two quantitative histologic 
grading systems for MEC.  
METHODS: The study examined previously diagnosed cases of 
MEC between 1980 and 2018 in LUTH. Data on age, sex and site 
were retrieved from the archives. Cases were categorized according 
to Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) and modified 
Brandwein (MB) criteria. Data analysis was done using SPSS 
Windows version 21.0.  

RESULTS: Of the 56 cases of MEC studied 30 (53.4%) were males 
and 26 (46.6%) were females (1.15:1). The minor glands were the 
most frequently involved site with 43 (76.8%) cases. There was a 
significant difference between the mean age of patients with minor 
salivary glands (45.3±19.6) MEC and major glands (27.9±21.4) 
MEC, (P=0.007). High grade tumours were the most common 
histological type in both the AFIP 31 (55.4%) and MB 35 (62.5%) 
systems. For the MB criteria, there was a significant association 
(P=0.021) between the occurrences of high grade MEC in the minor 
salivary glands.  
CONCLUSION: In this study, MEC had an almost equal sex 
predilection and was more common in minor salivary glands. The 
MB grading system uncovers more MECs as high-grade tumours 
than the AFIP system. Appropriate grading of MEC is an 
indispensable part of good case management.