ABSTRACT

Granular cell tumor is a rare, benign tumor that usually occurs as a single nodule in the skin, tongue or oral cavity. Granular cell tumor is a rare tumor in the head and neck region and most commonly occurs in the oral cavity, especially in the tongue. Although the lesion is usually seen as a solitary nodule with no boundaries, it can be found in different parts of the body. Abrikossoff thought that the tumor is firstly originated from muscle tissue and was called granular cell myoblastoma. Recent ultrastructural studies and stains such as S100 and neuron specific enolase confirm that this tumor is derived from Schwann cells of the peripheral nerves. A 50 year old female patient was admitted to the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery of Gazi University Dentistry Faculty due to a yellowish white colored, nodular lesion in the left maxillary buccal sulcus area which has been for about 6 months. Histopathological examination of the excised lesion was revealed a granular cell tumor, which was especially seen on the tongue in the oral cavity. No recurrence was observed at postoperative sixth month.