Alveolar soft-part sarcoma of the masseter and mandibular ramus: Report of a case and review of the literature

Alveolar soft-part sarcomas are clinically and morphologically distinct soft-tissue sarcomas, with an unknown histogenesis. When the tumors affect the region of the head and neck, they are often located in the orbit and tongue. We report a case of an alveolar soft-part sarcoma in the left masseter of a 28-year-old female. The patient had chronic pain and paresthesia of her left lower lip. Panoramic radiography and computed tomography showed a well-delimited radiolucent mass in the left ramus. An incisional biopsy was performed, and the sample submitted for histopathological study. The tumor showed positive periodic acid-Schiff diastase-resistant granules. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells were diffusely positive for myoglobin, and focally positive for actin and desmin.