Primary intestinal-type adenocarcinoma of the tongue

Primary intestinal-type adenocarcinoma (ITAC) of the tongue is a rare neoplasm. The case of a 59-year-old male with a painless mass in the dorsum of the oral tongue diagnosed as primary ITAC is reported here. The particular characteristic of the case was the patient's long-term medical history of 40years. The patient underwent resection of the tongue carcinoma through a midline approach and direct suture, with postoperative chemoradiotherapy. Immunohistochemical staining indicated that the tumour was positive for CK20 and negative for CK7. A review of the English-language literature was performed, which identified six cases of primary ITAC and three cases of metastatic ITAC of the tongue. The clinical characteristics and therapeutic methods used in these cases were analysed.