[Paraganglioma (glomus tumour) of the head and neck, a rare and demanding diagnosis].

Paragangliomas of the head and neck are rare tumours arising from extraadrenal ganglia. They are highly vascular lesions and are normally benign and not hormone secreting. Symptoms are usually discreet and the tumours often present as a lump in the neck or are diagnosed incidentally. Evaluation of paragangliomas of the head and neck, and surgery when indicated, is highly specialized care to be performed at two hospitals nationwide (in Region Uppsala and Region Skåne). Historically, treatment has mainly been surgical. However, with a multidisciplinary evaluation of each case recommendations can be individualized and treatment options may include surgery, radiotherapy or watchful waiting (wait-and-scan). When surgery is recommended for paragangliomas of the neck, it is best performed in collaboration between head-neck surgeons and vascular surgeons. Follow up in benign cases is mainly done through imaging.