Transoral Robotic Resection of Pediatric Tongue Base Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma.
Krisztina Somogyvári, Kinga Jakab-Péter, Tamás Tornóczki et al.
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Case in brief
A 13-year-old girl with low-grade mucoepidermoid carcinoma at the base of the tongue underwent transoral robotic resection. The tumor was removed en bloc with negative margins in 37 min, with no measurable blood loss; a branch of the right lingual artery was clipped under robotic visualization. Histopathology confirmed low-grade carcinoma and MAML2 rearrangement in more than 50% of tumor cells. Recovery was uneventful, with nasogastric feeding continued until postoperative Day 7. No adjuvant therapy was indicated.
What made this case unusual
The report describes transoral robotic surgery for a pediatric tongue-base tumor, an application that remains limited, and documents safe control of a lingual artery branch under robotic visualization.
Diagnostic / clinical pearl
In a carefully selected child with tongue-base mucoepidermoid carcinoma, robotic visualization can facilitate en bloc resection and vascular control; histopathology, including margin assessment, establishes the diagnosis and resection status.
Why it matters
The case supports the feasibility of this minimally invasive approach in a selected pediatric patient, while long-term oncologic and functional outcomes remain to be defined.