Question:
Hi everyone, I hope I am in the correct forum for posting this
message. 3 years ago my mom was diagnosed w/ Warthins Tumor. Since
that time she has had 5 surgeries, (including having her parotid
gland 95% removed), and is a regular at having her face "drained" at
the Drs. office. she has also been on countless months of
antibiotics. Now, her face is swollen and infected again and the
Drs. do not know what to do. I was hoping that by posting on this
board that someone could recommend a Dr. that is familiar w/ this.
I have done so much research, but I still can't find a Dr. who has
dealt w/ this. My mom is 65 years old and this is the only physical
problem that she has ever had in her life. Please, if you could
recommend any Drs. in Philadelphia, New York, New Jersey, Deleware,
Washington D.C or Virginia, cold you let me know? Thank you all for
your time!

Answer:
No need to worry, though. Dermatologist of the New Zealand Dermatological Society reconize these tumors as one of the most common type of cancer in humans, but Luckily, it is very rarely a threat to life.

Futhermore, they continue to say: Whatever the chosen treatment, Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) can nearly always be cured. BCCs occasionally come back at the same site (recur), but they can be treated again safely.

According to
, a Marshfield Clinic otolaryngologist (ears, nose and throat specialist, the non-cancerous tumors can undergo a malignant change. In either case, it is still usually recommend that patients just have it taken out."

Other recommendations are:

If malignancy is suspected prior to surgery, a total parotidectomy

(complete removal of the parotid glands) may be recommended.

"We take out the whole parotid gland and lymph nodes in the

neck," Dr. Urquhart said. "Low grade cancers do very well. High

grade cancers need to be evaluated and treated

further. Some can be very aggressive."

Additional treatment, including radiation therapy, may be necessary.

- Urquhart, AC

You may print copies of this post to present to your Doctor. If he feels it is important to remove tumor and limited tissue of the parotid so the tissue can be evaluated more thoroughly by a pathologist.

Hope this helps,