Le Rouzic O, Ramon P-P, Bouchindhomme B, Mariage P, Wallaert B
Service d'Endoscopie Respiratoire, Clinique des Maladies Respiratoires, Hôpital Calmette, CHRU, Boulevard du Pr Jules-Leclercq, 59037 Lille, France.
Rev Mal Respir. 2011 Jan;28(1):88-91. doi: 10.1016/j.rmr.2010.05.018. Epub 2011 Jan 13.
Tracheobronchial schwannoma is a rare benign airway tumour. There is no evidence to guide treatment for this condition.
A 76-year-old woman with a history of ischemic cardiomyopathy was hospitalized for dyspnoea with bronchial symptoms. Incidentally, the CT scan of the chest identified a tracheal mass. The bronchoscopy revealed a multilobar and regular whitish tumour with moderate vascularisation that was not causing obstruction. The patient was treated by complete resection with a rigid bronchoscope followed by cryotherapy. The histopathologic diagnosis was of a benign schwannoma without malignant elements. There was no recurrence during the follow-up period.
There is no consensus as to the optimal management of tracheal schwannoma because of the rarity of this tumour. Our observation supports the use of endoscopic resection with the additional of local cryotherapy which may reduce the risk of recurrence.
