Melissa A Pynnonen, M Boyd Gillespie, Benjamin Roman, Richard M Rosenfeld, David E Tunkel, Laura Bontempo, Itzhak Brook, Davoren Ann Chick, Maria Colandrea, Sandra A Finestone, Jason C Fowler, Christopher C Griffith, Zeb Henson, Corinna Levine, Vikas Mehta, Andrew Salama, Joseph Scharpf, Deborah R Shatzkes, Wendy B Stern, Jay S Youngerman, Maureen D Corrigan
Objective Neck masses are common in adults, but often the underlying etiology is not easily identifiable. While infections cause most of the neck masses in children, most persistent neck masses in adults are neoplasms. Malignant neoplasms far exceed any other etiology of adult neck mass. Importantly, an asymptomatic neck mass may be the initial or only clinically apparent manifestation of head and neck cancer, such as squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), lymphoma, thyroid, or salivary gland cancer. Evidence suggests that a neck mass in the adult patient should be considered malignant until proven otherwise...
September 2017: Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery