Pitfalls in the Staging of Cancer of the Major Salivary Gland Neoplasms

The major salivary glands consist of the parotid, submandibular, and sublingual glands. Most neoplasms in other subsites in the head and neck are squamous cell carcinoma, but tumors of the salivary glands may be benign or malignant. Surgical treatment differs if the lesion is benign, and therefore preoperative fine needle aspiration is important in salivary neoplasms. The role of imaging is to attempt to determine histology, predict likelihood of a lesion being malignant, and report an imaging stage. This article reviews the various histologies, imaging features, and staging of major salivary gland neoplasms.