A rare case of sclerosing mucoepidermoid carcinoma arising in minor salivary glands with immunohistochemical evaluation.

Mucoepidermoid carcinomas (MECs) are the most common malignancy of the salivary glands demonstrating a wide range of histologic variants and behavior. However, the sclerosing mucoepidermoid carcinoma (SMEC), a morphologic variant of this tumor is extremely rare and has been described almost exclusively in the major glands. The prominent sclerosis observed may obscure its typical morphological feature resulting in a diagnostic challenge. We describe herein a case of SMEC in a 43-year-old-woman, occurring in the minor salivary glands of palate. To our knowledge only 13 cases have been reported until this moment, being only 2 in minor salivary glands. We also performed the immunohistochemical evaluation of c-erbB-2 and Ki-67, searching for an association with the histopathological findings and behavior.