The Annals of Thoracic Surgery, Vol 23, 578-581, Copyright © 1977 by The Society of Thoracic Surgeons
Amyloid pseudotumor treated by tracheal resection
AP Naef, M Savary, JM Gruneck and RP Baumann
Primary amyloidosis is a rare disease, and even more so when it appears as
a tumorlike formation in the lung or tracheobronchial tree. On rare
occasions it has been treated by pulmonary resection but never before by
tracheal or bronchial sleeve resection. A case of tracheal sleeve resection
for tumorlike amyloidosis is reported. If the lesion is well circumscribed
to a relatively short tracheal or bronchial segment, sleeve resection
appears to be a satisfactory and economical solution. However, the problem
of a mucosa undermined by amyloid deposits above and below the tumorlike
lesion entails the risk of anastomotic stenosis. For this reason in future
cases, particularly those with extensive involvement, piecemeal endoscopic
removal should be considered as the method offering the best prognosis and
least risk.
