The First Published Case of Tonsil Cancer Presenting with Polymyositis

Background: Polymyositis is an autoimmune mediated inflammatory myopathy associated with lung, breast, bladder, colorectal and haematological malignancies. There is currently no published evidence of a case of tonsil cancer presenting with polymyositis. Case Report: A 69 year old man presented with signs and symptoms of polymyositis. Thorough investigation revealed a squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsil with no evidence of any other malignancy. After treatment with excision and neck dissection, the patient's polymyositis resolved. Conclusions: Polymyositis is a recognised paraneoplastic syndrome associated with a number of cancers. This is the first case (to the authors' knowledge) however as being the primary presenting feature of tonsil cancer. MeSH Search: Palatine Tonsil, Tonsillar Neoplasms, Polymyositis