Warthin tumor

11,913views

00:00 / 00:00

High Yield Notes

18 pages

Flashcards

Warthin tumor

of complete

External Links

Transcript

Watch video only

Content Reviewers

Warthin’s tumor, or Warthin tumor, is a benign slow-growing tumor of the parotid gland named for Dr. Aldred Scott Warthin, who was the first pathologist to described it.

Normally, the parotid gland has glandular cells that make enzymes that help to break down food, as well as tiny ducts lined by epithelial cells that carry those enzymes towards the mouth.

Warthin tumor’s other name, papillary cystadenoma lymphomatosum, is long and technical but describes the disease pretty well.

Cystadenoma refers to the fact that the ducts grow in size and fill up with serous fluid and cellular debris which forms a large cyst.

Papillary refers to the fact that the layer of epithelial cells start to fold into the duct which forms a finger-like projection, called a papilla.

Finally, lymphomatosum refers to the fact that the epithelium layer gets infiltrated by lymphocytes which organize themselves into what look like germinal centers, which is something you’d would expect to find if you looked at the cross section of a lymph node.

Looking at histology, we can see the papilla, the lymphocytes, and the cystic space where the serous fluid and cellular debris are.

Now, Warthin’s tumor isn’t malignant, meaning that it doesn’t break through the basement membrane layer of the tissue, although there is a connective tissue capsule usually forms around the growing tumor, which clearly demarcates it from the rest of the parotid gland.

Also, the parotid gland start to not function normally, since the ducts turn into cysts and normal epithelial cells stop functioning.

Summary

Warthin tumor, also known as papillary cystadenoma lymphomatosum, is a benign tumor that most commonly occurs in the parotid gland, a salivary gland located in the cheek. It is characterized by a cystic structure lined by tall columnar epithelium with lymphoid stroma, and typically presents as a slow-growing, painless mass. Treatment is generally surgical removal of the tumor, and the prognosis is excellent as the tumor is typically benign and does not tend to recur after removal.

Sources

  1. "Robbins Basic Pathology" Elsevier (2017)
  2. "Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, Twentieth Edition (Vol.1 & Vol.2)" McGraw-Hill Education / Medical (2018)
  3. "Pathophysiology of Disease: An Introduction to Clinical Medicine 8E" McGraw-Hill Education / Medical (2018)
  4. "CURRENT Medical Diagnosis and Treatment 2020" McGraw-Hill Education / Medical (2019)
  5. "Benign Parotid Tumors" Otolaryngologic Clinics of North America (2016)
Elsevier

Copyright © 2024 Elsevier, its licensors, and contributors. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.

Cookies are used by this site.

USMLE® is a joint program of the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) and the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME). COMLEX-USA® is a registered trademark of The National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners, Inc. NCLEX-RN® is a registered trademark of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. Test names and other trademarks are the property of the respective trademark holders. None of the trademark holders are endorsed by nor affiliated with Osmosis or this website.

RELX