Sites of neck swelling

• masses in the neck may be superficial or deep to the deep cervical fascia.
• of those which are deep to the fascia the masses may be derived from: ( see links below)
  • midline, unpaired structures
  • lateral, paired structures
• the following points are important when arriving at a diagnosis
  • until proved otherwise, an adult with a lump in the lateral neck has cancer (1)
  • not all cystic masses in the neck are benign (1)
    • cystic lateral neck masses in adults may be metastatic squamous carcinoma with cystic degeneration

Reference

1. Pynnonen M et al. Clinical Practice Guideline: Evaluation of the Neck Mass in Adults. Practice Guideline. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2017 Sep;157(2_suppl):S1-S30.