Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the larynx with neck and distant subcutaneous metastases : A case report with fine needle aspiration cytology

Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the upper aerodigestive tract is an unusual neoplasm with divergent cellular differentiation. Typically this carcinoma is a squamous cell carcinoma with spindle and giant cell components and may be misinterpreted as a sarcoma. A 56-year-old, diabetic male presented with a 2.5-cm, left-sided neck mass. Fine needle aspiration showed a mixture of malignant squamous and spindle cells. A third population of osteoclastlike giant cells was also present. Similar cells were aspirated from a subcutaneous left leg lesion months later. The diagnosis of a sarcomatoid carcinoma of the larynx should be considered when malignant epithelial, spindle and giant cells are present in aspirated smear material from the neck.