Alveolar soft part sarcoma of the tongue: a case report and review of the literature

Alveolar soft part sarcoma (ASPS) is a soft tissue malignant tumor of unknown origin in which tissues or cells are arranged like acini or organs. It usually presents in the deep muscles or fascia of the extremities, and rarely occurs in the head and neck, let alone the tongue. To our knowledge, only 49 cases of ASPS have been previously published in the tongue. Therefore, the course, age of onset, tumor size, and prognosis of ASPS in the tongue are not well understood. We present a case of ASPS in the dorsum of left tongue of a 24-year-old female. Histology of the resected tumor showed features of ASPS. She is currently disease-free at 12-month follow-up.