Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma on the Vermilion Border of the Upper Lip: A Case Report and Literature Review

Mucoepidermoid carcinoma occurring in the upper lip is extremely rare. A review of the English literature on mucoepidermoid carcinoma found only four reported cases in the lower lip, and none on the vermilion border of the upper lip. We present a 57-year-old patient who had an asymptomatic lesion on the middle upper lip for 30 years. It had grown progressively and had ulcerated over 1 month ago; the tumor was treated by M-excision. After 17 months of post-therapy, the patient had no local recurrence or distant metastasis. Mucoepidermoid carcinoma is a rare malignancy on the vermilion border of the upper lip with no reported cases to date. The origins of this tumor are not completely understood. Complete resection of the mucoepidermoid carcinoma usually achieves a successful outcome. Although very rare, mucoepidermoid carcinoma should be taken into consideration in the differential diagnosis of any upper lip mass.