A Rare Case of Benign-Appearing Myoepithelial Carcinoma of the Hard Palate in an Adolescent

Myoepithelial carcinoma is a rare malignant salivary gland tumor that is particularly uncommon in pediatric patients. A 14-year-old girl presented with a painless, slowly enlarging hard palate mass that had been present for 2 years. Clinically, the lesion closely resembled a benign tumor due to its young presentation age, well-encapsulated state, absence of mucosal ulceration, and lack of lymphadenopathy, leading to an initial diagnosis of pleomorphic adenoma. Complete surgical excision with superficial mucosa preservation was initially performed. However, histopathological examination revealed myoepithelial carcinoma with infiltrative growth despite its well-circumscribed appearance. Consequently, a second-stage wide local excision was performed to achieve adequate safety margins. The patient recovered uneventfully without functional impairment, with preservation of oral mucosal mobility. No evidence of recurrence was observed during 18 months of follow-up. This case demonstrates that myoepithelial carcinoma may present as a clinically benign, well-circumscribed palatal mass even in pediatric patients, emphasizing that benign clinical features and a negative intraoperative frozen-section result do not exclude malignancy and highlighting the importance of careful permanent histopathological examination and long-term postoperative surveillance.