Malignant carotid body tumor

Carotid body tumors (CBTs) are the most common paragangliomas of the head and neck. Most of CBTs are non-functioning, benign and slow growing; however, between 5 and 10% are malignant. Malignant CBTs are very rare; malignant paragangliomas typically affect younger adults (median age: 44 years) and the sex distribution is approximately equal. There are no histological criteria that can be used to diagnose a malignant CBT. The malignancy criteria applied are the well-recognized ones: invasion into adjacent structures and/or the presence of metastases, either in regional lymph nodes or in distant organs. Surgery is the most common treatment although adjuvant radiotherapy may be considered. We describe a case of malignant CBT in a 74-year-old man who presented with a left carotid tumor (stage II according to the Shamblin classification) and underwent surgical excision and adjuvant radiotherapy.