Epidemiology

• Account for 40% of primary tracheal tumors

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Physiology

• Malignant mucoepithelial tumor of lung
• Usually aggressive

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Pathology

• Characteristic appearance of cylinders (on end view), resembles normal thyroid tissue

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Diagnosis

• FOB: usually occurs as sessile/ polypoid mass in airway
  • EBB: diagnostic

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Clinical

• Progressive Upper Airway/Tracheobronchial Obstruction (see [[Obstructive Lung Disease]])
  • Clinical
    • Dyspnea
    • Chronic Hypoventilation (see Chronic Hypoventilation)

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Treatment

• Bronchoscopic Removal: fulguration/laser may be used for poor surgical candidates
• Surgical Excision ( with wide margins): usually recommended
  • Tumors may locally recur if not completely resected
• XRT: for positive surgical margins/ recurrent disease
  • Used more commonly with salivary gland origin, less experience with airway origin tumors
• Chemo: palliative (for metastatic disease)

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Prognosis

• May progress slowly over years
• May respond initially to XRT, but usually recurs if not initially resected

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References

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