Tongue Metastasis From Renal Cell Carcinoma: A Rare Case Presentation.
Hyeok Tae Kweon, Ji Seob Yoo, Yong Tae Hong
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Case in brief
A 72-year-old man with a history of renal cell carcinoma treated by right radical nephrectomy three years earlier presented with tongue pain and ulcerative lesions of three weeks’ duration. Imaging raised suspicion of metastases in the left upper lung and left 10th rib. Although hemiglossectomy was planned because the tongue lesion appeared malignant, incisional biopsy identified it as metastatic renal cell carcinoma.
What made this case unusual
The case involved renal cell carcinoma metastasis to the tongue, an uncommon site; the authors noted 51 reported cases worldwide from 1911 to 2017.
Diagnostic / clinical pearl
In a patient with prior renal cell carcinoma and a suspicious tongue lesion, biopsy can establish metastatic disease and inform the diagnostic assessment before planned resection.