title: Pleomorphic rhabdomyosarcoma presenting as a hypopharyngeal mass.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a rare malignancy derived from skeletal muscle with approximately 40% of cases involving the head and neck. The pleomorphic variant, however, most commonly occurs in the extremities and has never, to our knowledge, been described in the pharynx.
  
  
  METHODS
  A 46-year-old man with no significant medical history presented to the emergency department complaining of hemoptysis. A CT scan of the head and neck revealed a hypopharyngeal mass originally favored to be a benign process.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Operative endoscopy revealed a previously unseen mucosal ulceration, and subsequent biopsy resulted in the final diagnosis of pleomorphic RMS.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although quite rare, RMS should be considered in the differential diagnosis of a hypopharyngeal mass.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina.
authors.forename: Ryan A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Crane
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Naval Medical Center, San Diego, California.
authors.forename: Christopher M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Naval Medical Center, San Diego, California.
authors.forename: Guerard P
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Grice
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Naval Medical Center, San Diego, California.
authors.forename: David P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Mullin
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Kaiser Permanente, Lafayette, Colorado.
authors.forename: Kevin K
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Bach
mesh_terms: D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006469:Hemoptysis; D006801:Humans; D007012:Hypopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D007013:Hypopharynx / Q000473:pathology*; D020704:Laryngoscopes; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012208:Rhabdomyosarcoma / Q000175:diagnosis*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
keywords: head and neck cancer; hypopharynx; malignancy; rhabdomyosarcoma; staging