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Salivary Gland Tumors

Salivary glands make and release saliva that lubricates your mouth and throat, starts the digestion of your food, and coats the lining of the upper airway to help protect you from infections.  Salivary gland tumors, either benign (not cancer) or malignant (cancer), can arise in any of these glands.  There are three types of glands: parotid glands; submandibular glands; and sublingual glands.  There are also thousands of minor salivary glands that produce a lubricating musus and which are clustered throughout the upper aero digestive tract.

Physicians characterize malignant salivary gland tumors by site of origin, histology, invasiveness, nodal spread, and grade.  The grade of a tumor is based on how normal the cancer cells look and how quickly they grow or spread.  (Grades 1, 2, and 3)

Types of Salivary Gland Tumors We Treat

  • Mucoepidermoid carcinoma
  • Adenoid cystic carcinoma
  • Acidic cell carcinoma
  • Adenocarcinoma
  • Malignant mixed tumor
  • Squamous cell carcinoma

Our Approach

Depending on your diagnosis, stage and particular situation, salivary gland cancers can be treated with radiation, surgery, or chemotherapy, either alone or in combination with each other.

The physicians at the University of Washington Department of Radiation Oncology work very closely with your surgeon and medical oncologist to determine which combination of treatment is best for you. Because of our team’s deep collaboration with the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, you can be assured that your treatment plan will be highly individualized and based on latest the advances in cancer research.

Please contact us if you are interested in a consultation to discuss the options that best fit you.

I am committed to a multidisciplinary approach in the management of cancers as well as providing state-of-the-art care.

- Jay Liao, MD

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Additional information about
salivary gland tumors

Radiation Oncologists who specialize in
salivary gland tumors

Treatment Options

Treatment Facilities

UW Medical Center – Montlake – Radiation Oncology Center

1959 NE Pacific Street
Seattle, WA 98195

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Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center – South Lake Union

1354 Aloha Street
Seattle, WA 98109

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UW Medicine Northwest Hospital & Medical Center — Fred Hutchison Cancer Center Radiation Oncology Services

1570 N 115th Street
Seattle, WA 98133

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Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center – Proton Therapy

1570 N. 115th Street
Seattle, WA 98133
https://www.fredhutch.org/en/patient-care/treatments/proton-therapy.html

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UW Medical Cyclotron Facility

1959 NE Pacific Street
Seattle, WA 98195

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