WHILE primary carcinoma of the middle ear is known to be of relatively common occurrence, primary carcinoma of the mastoid without involvement of the antrum or the tympanic cavity is a medical curiosity.
Cases of primary malignant disease limited to the mastoid were encountered on three occasions in the literature of the past 20 years. Lillie1 briefly reported a case of "primary carcinoma of the mastoid," which he encountered, without giving any histopathological details. Corya2 recorded a case of osteogenic fibrosarcoma of the temporal bone which involved the posteroinferior part of the mastoid. Scal and Ide3 described a case of angioendothelioma of the mastoid in a child of 21 months. Both of the latter two cases presented facial paralysis and a polyp protruding through the posterior wall of the external auditory meatus without involvement of the middle ear.
REPORT OF CASE
A 79-year-old white man presented the