INCLUDES POWERPOINT PRESENTAION ON TUMOURS OF OROPHAYNX IN DETAIL

1. Tumours of Oropharynx
Dr. Srikanth Reddy
MBBS MS ENT
ASSISSTANT PROFESSOR
TRR MEDICAL COLLEGE

2. BENIGN TUMOURS
• They are far less common compared to
malignant tumours.
• The common ones are:
• PAPILLOMA
• HAEMANGIOMA
• PLEOMORPHIC ADENOMA
• MUCOUS CYST

3. PAPILLOMA
• It is usually pedunculated, arises from the
tonsil, soft palate or faucial pillars.
• Often asymptomatic, it may be discovered
accidentally by the patient or the physician.
• When large, it causes local irritation in the
throat.
• Treatment is surgical excision.

4. HAEMANGIOMA
• It can occur on the palate, tonsil, posterior and lateral
pharyngeal wall.
• It may be of capillary or cavernous type.
• Capillary haemangioma or asymptomatic cavernous
• haemangioma may be left alone.
• It is treated only if it is increasing in size or giving
symptoms of bleeding and dysphagia.
• Treatment is diathermy coagulation or injection
of sclerosing agents.
• Cryotherapy or laser coagulation is very effective

5. PLEOMORPHIC ADENOMA
• It is mostly seen submucosally on the hard or
soft palate.
• It is potentially malignant and should be
excised totally.

6. MUCOUS CYST
• It is usually seen in the vallecula. It is yellow in
appearance and may be pedunculated or sessile.
• When large, it causes foreign body sensation in
the throat.
• Treatment is surgical excision, if pedunculated; or
incision and drainage with removal of its cyst
wall.
• Lipoma, fibroma and neuroma are other rare
benign tumours.

7. MALIGNANT TUMOURS
• The common sites of malignancy in the
oropharynx are:
1. Posterior one-third (or base) of tongue.
2. Tonsil and tonsillar fossa.
3. Faucial palatine arch, i.e. soft palate and
anterior pillar.
4. Posterior and lateral pharyngeal wall.

8. GROSS APPEARANCES
• Gross appearances of the tumour can be divided into
four types:
1. Superficially spreading
2. Exophytic
3. Ulcerative
4. Infiltrative
• The first two types are seen in the palatine arch; they
are rarely associated with metastasis.
• Ulcerative and infiltrative types often involve the base of tongue
and tonsil.
• They have poor prognosis and deeply invade the adjoining
structures and have marked tendency for regional metastasis.

9. HISTOLOGICALLY APPEARANCE
• Histologically, the tumours may be:
1. Squamous cell carcinoma. Shows various grades of differentiation
(well, moderately or poorly differentiated) and is
the most common variety.
2. Lymphoepithelioma. A poorly differentiated variant of the above, with
admixture of lymphocytes, which do not show any
features of malignancy.
• This is often seen in tonsil, base of tongue and vallecula.
3. Adenocarcinoma. It arises from minor salivary glands. It is mostly seen
on the palate and fauces.
4. Lymphomas. Both Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphomas arise from the
tonsil and base of tongue.
• They are seen in the young adults and sometimes in the children.
• Enlarged cervical nodes may coexist.