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Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2003;129:372.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Diagnosis: Lymphoepithelial carcinoma (LEC) with a focal conventional squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) component

Lymphoepithelial carcinoma was first described in 1921 as a variant of SCC.¹ Lymphoepithelial carcinoma grows either in nests or as single infiltrating cells with round or oval vesicular nuclei, prominent nucleoli, indistinct cellular borders, and numerous mitoses. The cells are undifferentiated and nonkeratinizing and stain positive for epithelial markers such as cytokeratin and epithelial membrane antigen. A prominent lymphoid infiltrate composed of lymphocytes and plasma cells differentiates LEC from conventional SCC. The epithelial cells are the neoplastic component of the tumor, while the lymphocytic infiltrate is considered to be reactive in nature. Generally, there is little desmoplastic or fibrous connective stroma,^1-5 and there is no characteristic gross appearance. The reported tumors have ranged in size from 0.8 to 4.5 cm in greatest dimension.⁶

Lymphoepithelial carcinoma most commonly occurs in the nasopharynx and represents 40% of all nasopharyngeal tumors.² Outside the nasopharynx, LEC is very rare, with only 31 cases of . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2003;129(3):370.
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