Epithelioid haemangioendothelioma of the parotid salivary gland: a case report.

Haemangioendothelioma is a vascular tumour characterised by the proliferation of endothelial cells with an epithelioid appearance. The behaviour of this neoplasm is intermediate between haemangioma and angiosarcoma. It may be localised in a wide range of sites, with a preference for soft and bone tissue. It is only rarely localised in the head and neck and even more rarely in the salivary glands. We describe a case of haemangioendothelioma in a 28-year-old man that originated in the retroneural region of the parotid gland, compressing the gland tissue and posteriorly infiltrating the muscular plane. A total parotidectomy surgical operation including the removal of lymph nodes in the region was performed followed by radiotherapy. An immunohistochemical investigation, carried out using the oxidase-antiperoxidase method, indicated that the neoplastic elements of the marker of the endothelial cells CD34 were positive for vimentine and for muscle-specific actin, showing a moderate proliferative action of the cellular elements with MIB-1 positivity estimated at around 6%. The peculiarity of the case we describe resides in the rarity of the haemangioendothelioma localisation in the parotid gland.