A "mystery tissue" in the nasopharynx that has been neglected for centuries.

In a recent study published in Radiotherapy and Oncology, a team led by the Dutch Cancer Institute has an anatomically new finding that there are a pair of previously neglected and clinically relevant "unknown entities" in the human body that may be preserved in patients receiving radiotherapy to provide them with an opportunity to improve their quality of life.
The "unknown entity" was discovered by chance when the team conducted retrospective cohort tests on 100 patients with prostate or urethra adenocarcinoma to assess the presence and morphology of the positive area of PSMA PET/CT (prostate-specific membrane antigen electron emission computer fault spectrorosis). When used in combination with radioactive glucose injections, the diagnostic tool highlights tumors in the body.The researchers found that this completely different gland, located at the back of the nasopharynx, has been lurking for quite some time and can be said to have been neglected by scientists for centuries."People have three salivary glands (mumps, lower jaws and lower tongue glands), but the new findings are not there," explained Wouter Vogel, a radiation oncologist at the Netherlands Cancer Institute and author of the study. As far as we know, the only salivary or mucus glands in the nasopharyngeal system are very small under the microscope, with up to 1,000 glands evenly distributed throughout the mucous membranes. So imagine how surprised we were when we found out. Salivais essential for the functioning of our digestive system and is produced by three major salivary glands, namely the mumps, jaws and lower tongue glands. There are about 1,000 small salivary glands throughout the mouth and digestive tract, but they are usually too small to be observed without a microscope.Vogel's team's new discovery is much larger, showing what appears to be a previously neglected pair of glands, ostensibly the fourth-largest major salivary gland, located at the back of the nasopharynx, above the upper jaw, near the center of the human head."These two newly discovered areas also have other characteristics of the salivary glands," said lead author Mattthijs Valstar, an oral surgeon at the University of Amsterdam. Depending on their anatomical position (above the pharynx tube), we call them 'tubarial glands'.PSMA PET/CT scans of all 100 patients found these tube glands, and physical examinations of two bodies (one man and one woman) revealed mysterious two-sided structures, with the drainage tube opening facing the nasopharyngeal wall from the macro.
"As far as we know, this structure does not correspond to previous anatomical descriptions," the researchers explained in their paper. It is speculated that it may contain a large number of slurry adenoblies, which play a physiological role in nasopharyngeal/oral lubrication and swallowing. As for how these glands are identified, the researchers say the titular glands were found in a hard-to-reach anatomical position at the base of the skull, and are difficult to identify with endoscopes because they are part of a larger glandular system. In addition, only updated PSMA-PET/CT imaging technology can detect the structure of new salivary glands, which exceeds the visualization capabilities of technologies such as ultrasound, CT and MRI scanning.In addition, using clinical data from a forward-looking collection of 723 patients with head and neck cancer, the researchers reviewed the effects of radiotherapy on salivation and swallowing. The results showed that radiation delivery to the "tube glands" would lead to greater complications for patients. As a result, the findings not only benefit future oncology, but also seem to support the fact that the structure of this neglected mysterious "unknown entity" is indeed a salivary gland.However, the team acknowledges that more research is needed on larger, more diverse populations to validate their findings, but says the findings provide guidance for cancer patients before radiation treatment because the salivary glands are so vulnerable to radiation therapy. Retaining these glands in patients receiving radiotherapy may provide them with an opportunity to improve their quality of life."If it's true, it could change the way we look at diseases in the region," Valerie Fitzhugh, a pathologist at Rutgers University in the United States who was not involved in the study, told The New York Times. (China Biotechnology Network
)references:the tubarial salivary glands: A potential new organ at risk for radiotherapy