HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Personal Folders Download to citation manager Permission Requests Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Maish, M. Articles by Vaporciyan, A. A. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Maish, M. Articles by Vaporciyan, A. A. Related Collections Trachea and bronchi

J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2003;126:2077-2080
© 2003 The American Association for Thoracic Surgery

BBrief communication

Chondrosarcoma arising in the trachea: a case report and review of the literature

^a Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Tex, USA

Received for publication May 12, 2003; accepted for publication May 28, 2003.

^* Address for reprints: Ara A. Vaporciyan, MD, 1515 Holcombe Boulevard, Box 445, Houston, TX 77030-4009, USA
avaporci@notes.mdacc.tmc.edu

The first 20% of the full text of this article appears below.

Primary malignant tracheal tumors are rare, accounting for only 0.2% of all malignancies of the respiratory tract. We present a case of tracheal chondrosarcoma in a 78-year-old man and review the literature.

	Clinical summary

 
A 78-year-old white man had a 3-month history of progressive shortness of breath with exertion. He did not have fever, cough, chills, night sweats, or hemoptysis. His primary care physician initially attributed his symptoms to worsening chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and treated him with inhalers and oral steroids. As his symptoms progressed, the patient became increasingly bedridden, with dyspnea at rest, and he developed significant weight loss. He also began to experience episodic hoarseness. This symptom progression prompted further evaluation and he had a chest radiograph and then computed tomography (CT), which revealed a noncalcified mass in the lower third of the trachea with near compete obstruction of the lumen. An extratracheal extension of the mass was also present. The patient was transferred to our institution.

The patient was taken to the operating room where flexible and rigid bronchoscopy demonstrated a firm, white, nonfriable endotracheal mass emanating from the right side of the membranous trachea and obstructing 80% of the tracheal lumen. Endotracheal resection was performed via the rigid bronchoscope to provide an adequate airway. A postoperative CT scan confirmed the improved airway (Figure 1). Pathologic examination of the surgical specimen revealed a type I chondrosarcoma. The patient recovered uneventfully and was sent home for 3 weeks of intensive physical and nutritional therapy. He then underwent definitive resection.

View larger version (93K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 1. Computed tomography images demonstrating the tracheal lesion at presentation (A) and after endoscopic resection of the endoluminal disease (B).

This article has been cited by other articles:

				F. Mirza, S. Paul, B. M. Stiles, K. C. Piotti, K. R. Kawaguchi, and N. K. Altorki Adult Onset Asthma Ann. Thorac. Surg., August 1, 2010; 90(2): e31 - e31. [Full Text] [PDF]

				U WAGNETZ, D PATSIOS, G DARLING, F LAS HERAS, and D HWANG Tracheal chondrosarcoma -- a rare complication in Maffucci syndrome Br. J. Radiol., September 1, 2009; 82(981): e178 - e181. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]