Malignant Transformation of Radicular Cyst/Residual Cyst: A Review of Literature

Aim: The aim of this study is to review the literature concerning malignant transformation of radicular cyst.
Material and Method: A literature search using MEDLINE, accessed via the National Library of Medicine PubMed interface (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed), searching for articles relating to the malignant transformation of radicular/residual cyst written in English from 1960-2013.
Results: Our search identified only fourteen studies available to date in English written literature. No randomized controlled trials to assess the possibility of malignant transformation of radicular/residual cyst were in the literature.
Conclusion: The development of malignancy from radicular /residual cysts is rare, however, it should always be considered as a differential diagnosis. The numbers of studied cases in literature are few but small number of case series & case reports are available. Also it is recommended that further work involving large series of tumors arising from radicular /residual cyst to determine the malignancy potential.