Synovial sarcoma of the head and neck: rare case of cervical metastasis.
BACKGROUND
Synovial sarcoma is a rarely encountered soft tissue sarcoma. Surgery with a wide surgical margin is the treatment of choice. However, there is no consensus on the treatment of head and neck synovial sarcoma in patients with cervical metastasis.


METHODS
A 20-year-old man was seen with a palpable mass in the right neck. He had been diagnosed with synovial sarcoma of the right tonsil and treated by surgery 1 and a half years before; therefore, the mass detected was thought to be a cervical metastasis of synovial sarcoma. We performed a modified radical neck dissection with no postoperative treatment. The pathological diagnosis was confirmed by detecting the SS-specific fusion gene SYT-SSX1.


RESULTS
The patient remains free of recurrence or metastasis 2 years and 10 months after the surgery.


CONCLUSIONS
We encountered a case of head and neck synovial sarcoma with cervical metastasis that was successfully treated.
Ishiki
Hiroto
H
Division of Head and Neck Surgery, Shizuoka Cancer Center, Shizuoka, Japan. h.ishiki@scchr.jp
Miyajima
Chie
C
Nakao
Kazunari
K
Asakage
Takahiro
T
Sugasawa
Masashi
M
Motoi
Toru
T
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism; D020732:Cytogenetic Analysis; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D015514:Oncogene Proteins, Fusion / Q000378:metabolism; D013584:Sarcoma, Synovial / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000556:secondary*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014067:Tonsillar Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D014068:Tonsillectomy; D055815:Young Adult
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D015514:Oncogene Proteins, Fusion; C116512:SYT-SSX fusion protein