Malignant Lesions

Examples of malignant lesions include basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, adenoid cystic carcinoma and ceruminous adenoma or adenocarcinoma. There are a number of malignancies that involve the parotid gland that can secondarily invade the ear canal. Radiation therapy and chemotherapy have little effect on these tumor types. These lesions are best treated by surgical excision.

For lesions limited to the ear canal and eardrum, surgery involves a lateral temporal bone resection (complete removal of the ear canal and eardrum). When the tumor has spread into the middle ear space, a subtotal temporal bone resection should be performed. This involves the additional removal of the inner ear. For more extensive lesions, consideration should be given to a total temporal bone resection.

Chordoma and chondrosarcoma are tumors that can involve the temporal bone and cranial base that have features characteristic of both benign and malignant lesions.