A case report and literature insights of the successful surgical management of an incidentally detected primary tracheal Chondrosarcoma.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE

Primary tracheal neoplasia constitute a rare class of oncological entities. They constitute merely 0.1 % of all subsets of malignancies. They are observed more in males than females. Furthermore, they are generally diagnosed after the age of 65 years due to their mostly asymptomatic disease progression. Despite being predominantly asymptomatic, symptoms manifest typically after a 75 % tracheal lumen obstruction.

CASE PRESENTATION

In this case report, we demonstrate the rare case of a 59-year-old Middle Eastern male who presented to the Thoracic Surgery clinic complaining only of a progressive dyspnea. The conducted preoperative diagnostic examinations included a computed tomography scan and a bronchoscopy with biopsy. They paved the path to establishing a preliminary diagnosis. Due to the constellation of clinical and radiological findings, a surgical intervention was indicated.

CLINICAL DISCUSSION

Curative treatment was accomplished via tracheal segmental resection and carrying out a primary end-to-end anastomosis. The postoperative course was unremarkable and the patient was postoperatively followed-up in the Thoracic Surgery outpatient clinic for 1 year. To this day, there is no evidence of tumor recurrence or remanence.

CONCLUSION

Tracheal chondrosarcoma is an extremely rare tumor. After conducting a meticulous literature review, we observed that our case is only the 36th documented worldwide and the first reported in Syria. It highlights the importance of considering this diagnosis in clinical practice and advocates for further research to improve diagnostic methods, surgical techniques, and follow-up protocols to better manage such rare conditions.