Nasopharyngeal amyloidosis: a case report.

Nasopharygeal amyloidosis is a rare entity described in the otolaryngology literature. It is usually isolated and does not represent a manifestation of systemic disease. Herein we discuss the first reported case of incidentally discovered nasopharyngeal amyloidosis leading to the diagnosis of systemic disease. A patient presented to the otolaryngology clinic with complaints of otalgia and eustachian tube dysfunction. He was noted to have a unilateral middle ear effusion and subsequent nasolaryngoscopy demonstrated a right nasopharyngeal mass at the eustachian tube orifice--this was biopsied and shown to be nasopharyngeal amyloidosis. Amyloidis is a condition which entails the abnormal deposition of proteins in tissue (local) and organs (systemic) throughout the body secondary to an alteration in the secondary structure of the protein into an insoluble form, termed amyloid. Amyloidosis in the head and neck most often presents in the larynx (60%), followed by the trachea (9%), orbit (4%), and nasopharynx (3%). The vast majority of these lesions represent isolated amyloidosis, which is not associated with a shortened lifespan or the sequelae associated with systemic disease. Treatment of local disease is typically excision followed by routine surveillance for recurrence. Treatment of systemic disease is complex, and should be managed by a Hematologist/Oncologist. Amyloidosis can be associated with malignancy, thus proper workup is important even when isolated lesions are discovered.