Malignant Salivary Glands Tumors in Kerman Province: A Retrospective Study

Introduction: Malignant salivary glands tumors (MSGTs) are uncommon cancers. The most common site of these cancers is the parotid gland. Some investigations show these cancers preference for males than females. The majority of MSGTs arise in sixth decade of human life. According to the literature review for the present work, there is a few epidemiological researches about MSGTs in Iran and especially there isn't any study in Kerman province. So the aim of this study was investigation the incidence, sex, age, histological types, and site distribution of MSGTs in the Kerman province during the time period from March 1991 to March 2002. Methods and Materials: Documents and records of 70 patients with MSGTs diagnosed from March 1991 to March 2002 were reviewed. The patients' records were analyzed based on gender, age, location, and histopathological type of the tumor. Data were analyzed by SPSS-13.5 statistical software using t-test, chi-square, and ANOVA tests. Results: During this period of time, 70 cases (43men, 27 women) of MSGTs had been diagnosed. Mucoepidermoid carcinoma was the most common cancer (30%) and the parotid was the most affected site (70%). The age range was 10-86 years old with the overall mean age of 50.18 ± 17.97. Discussion: Despite a considerable volume of literatures written about MSGTs in many countries, the incidence of these cancers haven't as yet been thoroughly documented or analyzed in Iran. However, comparison between the findings of this study with the results of other investigations showed a relative consistency.