Salivary gland cancer

Overview

Salivary gland cancer is cancer that begins in the salivary glands. Your salivary glands make saliva to keep your mouth moist and help you digest food. You have three pairs of major salivary glands — in front of each ear (parotid glands), under your tongue (sublingual glands) and below your jawbone (submandibular glands). In addition, hundreds of tiny salivary glands line your mouth, nose and throat.

Tumors that form in the salivary glands can be noncancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant). Salivary gland cancer is rare — most salivary gland tumors are noncancerous (benign).

Most salivary gland tumors start in the parotid glands. Signs and symptoms of salivary gland tumors include swelling in a salivary gland, pain and weakness in the facial muscles. Treatment for salivary gland tumors usually involves surgery and, sometimes, radiation.

Why choose Mayo Clinic for salivary gland cancer

• Expertise and experience. Mayo Clinic specialists have extensive experience in diagnosing and treating salivary gland cancer, including rare types of salivary gland cancer.
• Multispecialty team. Care for people with salivary gland cancer is directed by ear, nose and throat (ENT) experts specializing in head and neck cancers, who coordinate your multispecialty team. Team members may include experts in radiation oncology, medical oncology, plastic and reconstructive surgery, rehabilitation therapies, and other specialties as needed.
• Latest technology. At Mayo Clinic, doctors use the latest treatment options and technology to treat your salivary gland cancer, including intensity-modulated radiation therapy or stereotactic radiosurgery. These technologies deliver powerful radiation to the cancer cells while limiting radiation to critical healthy tissues nearby, such as the eyes, optic nerves, brain, brainstem and spinal cord.
• Minimally invasive techniques. Surgery to remove a salivary gland can be complicated because several important nerves are located in and around the salivary glands. Mayo Clinic specialists have extensive experience in minimally invasive surgical techniques that reduce the effects of cancer removal on your appearance. Mayo's surgeons work to minimize the scar from the surgical incision, preserve the facial nerve and reconstruct the surgery site.
• Comprehensive cancer center. Mayo Clinic Cancer Center meets strict standards for a National Cancer Institute comprehensive cancer center, recognizing scientific excellence and a multispecialty approach focused on cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and in Jacksonville, Fla., are ranked among the Best Hospitals for cancer by U.S. News & World Report.

Mayo Clinic: Answers you can trust

At Mayo Clinic, we assemble a team of specialists who take the time to listen and thoroughly understand your health issues and concerns. We tailor the care you receive to your personal health care needs. You can trust our specialists to collaborate and offer you the best possible outcomes, safety and service.

Mayo Clinic is a not-for-profit medical institution that reinvests all earnings into improving medical practice, research and education. We're constantly involved in innovation and medical research, finding solutions to improve your care and quality of life. Your doctor or someone on your medical team is likely involved in research related to your condition.

Our patients tell us that the quality of their interactions, our attention to detail and the efficiency of their visits mean health care — and trusted answers — like they've never experienced.

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