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Salivary Gland Malignancies: Diagnosis and Treatment of a Rare and Challenging Cancer

by Gretchen Henkel •

Suggest support: Physicians can assess their patients’ community resources-religious, social, or familial-and refer them to counseling if the situation warrants.

Pass on resources: Unguided, a patient may run into confusing and even disreputable information on the Internet, noted Dr. Medina. It is helpful to suggest credible Web sites for patients. Many associations offer online user discussion groups, where patients share information and support. Others can offer referrals to local resources. Dr. Schaitkin has co-written a book with Mark Mays, The Facial Nerve (Thieme, 2000). This is a major reference for physicians and to a lesser extent for patients with facial nerve paralysis.

Internet Resources

Supports for dealing with cancer diagnosis and treatment:

  • American Cancer Society-a premier source of well-written and validated information about all types of cancer and treatments. www.cancer.org
  • CancerCare-started more than 50 years ago by oncology social workers, this organization offers warm line phone consultations with trained social workers to help cancer patients with insurance, treatment and psychosocial issues. www.cancercare.org
  • The National Cancer Institute offers a wealth of consumer publications about all aspects of cancer diagnosis and treatment, including Managing the Side Effects of Radiation Therapy. Many of these publications can be ordered or downloaded from the NCI publications locator Web site: www.cancer.gov/publications

Supports for dealing with facial paralysis:

  • Sources of referrals to physical therapists who specialize in facial nerve retraining, as advanced by H. Jacqueline Diels, OTR, University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics. www.bellspalsy.ws/centers.htm
  • Bell’s Palsy Information Site-although this Web site is primarily directed to those with Bell’s palsy, several excellent resources are applicable to facial nerve paralysis. Patients can click on information about the facial nerve, and facial nerve retraining. www.bellspalsy.ws

References

  1. American Cancer Society. What are the key statistics about salivary gland cancer? August 2006. Retrieved September 18, 2008 from www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_1X_What_are_the_key_statistics_for_salivary_gland_cancer_54.asp?sitearea= .
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  2. Kaszuba SM, Zafereo ME, Rosenthal DI, et al. Effect of initial treatment on disease outcome for patients with submandibular gland carcinoma. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2007;133:546-50.
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  3. American Cancer Society. What is salivary gland cancer? August 2006. Retrieved September 18, 2008 from www.cancer.org/docroot/cri/content/cri_2_4_1x_what_is_salivary_gland_cancer_54.asp .
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  4. Bron LP, Traynor SF, McNeil EB, O’Brien CJ. Primary and metastatic cancer of the parotid: comparison of clinical behavior in 232 cases. Laryngoscope 2003;113:1070-75.
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  5. Pinkston JA, Cole P. Incidence rates of salivary gland tumors: results from a population-based study. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 1999;120:834-40.
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  6. Alphs HH, Eisele DW, Westra WH. The role of fine needle aspiration in the evaluation of parotid masses. Curr Opin Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2006;14:62-6.
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  7. National Comprehensive Cancer Network. NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™; Head and Neck Cancers. Available online at www.nccn.org/professionals/physician_gls/PDF/head-and-neck.pdf .
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  8. Chen AM, Granchi PJ, Garcia J, et al. Local-regional recurrence after surgery without postoperative radiation for carcinomas of the major salivary glands: implications for adjuvant therapy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2007;67:982-7.
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  9. Chen AM, Bucci MK, Quivey JM, et al. Long-term outcome of patients treated by radiation therapy alone for salivary gland carcinomas. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2006;66:1044-50.
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  10. NCCN, see note 7.
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  11. Retrieved September 26, 2008 from: http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?cond=%22Salivary+Gland+Neoplasms%22 .
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  12. Gilbert J, LiY, Pinto HA, et al. Phase II trial of taxol in salivary gland malignancies (E1394): a trial of the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group. Head Neck 2006;28: 197-204.
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  13. Diels HJ, Combs D. Neuromuscular retraining for facial paralysis. Otolaryngol Clin North Am 1997;30:727-43.
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  14. Cronin GW, Steenerson RL. The effectiveness of neuromuscular facial retraining combined with electromyography in facial paralysis rehabilitation. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2003;128:534-38.
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