Carcinoid tumour of the middle ear.

Carcinoid tumours belong to the rarer neoplasms of the middle ear. In 1980, Murphy et al. described the first case of a carcinoid tumour of the middle ear. Only five cases could be traced in the literature. The light and electron microscope features of a primary atypical carcinoid tumour of the middle ear are presented and compared with those described in the literature. Primary carcinoid of the middle ear appears to be derived from the epithelial lining of the middle ear. Distant metastases have not been reported. The duration and nature of the symptoms are of little diagnostic value. An atypical carcinoid tumour in the left ear of a 33-year-old woman is described.