Usually, sinus tumors are benign, although malignant tumors sometimes do occur. When a tumor in the sinus is malignant, it is probably squamous cell carcinoma, which can also form in the nasal cavity. The usual treatment for these tumors is surgical removal, radiation treatment, and chemotherapy.
Malignant tumors are most often slow growing and are often diagnosed late because the symptoms mimic sinusitis. The cause of malignant sinus tumors is unknown, but like other cancers, certain risk factors can increase your odds of getting one. The risk factors include smoking and airborne pollutants as well as exposure to industrial chemicals or other workforce environment factors like excess dust (think woodworkings). Also, being male and over 40 increases your risk (yet another downside to turning 40).
CT and/or MRI with contrast can be helpful to diagnose sinus tumors, and biopsies can determine malignancy. The MRI images below show a maxillary sinus tumor.
Thank you for posting this information. I was just diagnosed with a sinus tumor that has eroded the bone. I go for surgery next month and am concerned. My doctor says that his "gut feeling" is that it is non-cancerous, but after being online and looking at symptoms, mine lean more toward the cancerous tumor.
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