gms | German Medical Science

Introduction: Nasopharyngeal mass resembles a confounding problem in adults because of the increased fear of malignancy with age. Histopathological pattern of nasopharyngeal lesions varies greatly from common benign lesions such as hyperplastic lymphoid tissue and benign nasopharyngeal cysts to malignant diseases such as lymphoma and nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Methods: We conducted a prospective study that included all adult patients presented to our tertiary referral hospital with a nasopharyngeal mass in 2 years period from October 2014 to September 2016. Blind punch biopsy was taken for cases clinically suspicious for having nasopharyngeal neoplasm. Histopathological findings were analyzed as regard demographic data and clinical presentation.

Results: A total of 100 patients (54 males and 46 females) were included. Patients' age ranged between 16 and 76 years (mean ± SD = 38.7± 16.7 years). The most commonly detected pathological lesion was hyperplastic lymphoid tissue hyperplasia (60%). Malignant lesions constituted 38% of the study population (10% squamous cell carcinoma, 14 % undifferentiated carcinoma, and 14% malignant lymphoma). In addition, benign nasopharyngeal cysts were diagnosed in 2% of cases.

Conclusion: Benign lesions are more commonly detected in the nasopharynx in adult population particularly hyperplastic lymphoid tissue. Histopathological examination of nasopharyngeal mass is very essential to rule out malignancy which is not uncommon.

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