Intrathoracic Endotracheal Metastasis from Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma:A First Case Report and Review of the Literature

• Main Authors: Heming Lu, Jiaxin Chen, Yanyan Xie, Jinjian Cheng, Yanrong Hao, Luxing Peng, Qiang Pang, Shan Deng, Junzhao Gu, Jian Qin, Zhiping Lu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Karger Publishers 2010-05-01
• Series: Case Reports in Oncology
• Subjects: Radiotherapy; Metastatic disease; Endotracheal malignancy; Nasopharyngeal carcinoma
• Online Access: http://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/314233
• ISSN: 1662-6575

Intrathoracic endotracheal metastasis from a very distant site is extremely rare. We report the first case of such a disease in a 68-year-old man with nasopharyngeal carcinoma who presented with a cough and hemoptysis 34 months after finishing radiotherapy. Prior to tracheal metastasis, he developed a solitary metastasis in the lung and underwent chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy. Computed tomography showed the presence of an enlarged lymph node in the para-aortic arch. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy revealed an endotracheal tumor 1 cm above the carina. Histological and immunohistochemical analyses confirmed its nasopharyngeal origin. He was treated with conventional radiotherapy and three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy; complete tumor remission was achieved. He died of nonmalignant disease with no signs of tumor recurrence 2 years after treatment completion. Radiotherapy may be an appropriate management approach to achieve long-term tumor control for this disease.