The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the importance of alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma as a differential diagnosis in head and neck cancer and educate the radiological community.

A 23-year-old man presented to the outpatients with a painful enlarging lump in his mouth near the orifice of Stensen's parotid duct (see Figures 1 and 2).[Fig 1][Fig 2] He did not display any symptoms of parotid duct obstruction and did not have any significant past medical history. A biopsy was performed, which revealed alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma. Staging scans did not reveal metastatic disease. He subsequently underwent surgical resection and adjuvant chemoradiotherapy.

The parotid gland is the most common site of salivary gland neoplasms. The most common type is epithelial in origin [1]. Mesenchymal neoplasms within the parotid gland are most commonly benign and include hemangiomas, lymphangiomas, and lipomas. Salivary gland sarcomas are exceedingly rare and only account for 0.3% of salivary gland neoplasms [2]. Rhabdomyosarcoma is a highly malignant neoplasm, that most commonly affects children and young adults and occurs most frequently in the head and neck region and soft tissues of the upper and lower...

Although sarcoma of the head and neck is rare, it should be considered as an important differential diagnosis for head and neck malignancy. Imaging is crucial for diagnosis and prognostification.

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