Clinical aspects and treatment of primary tracheal malignancies.
CONCLUSIONS
Selecting patients that are candidates for surgical treatment is important in the work-up of patients with tracheal cancer. Toward this goal, centralization of care concerning tracheal tumors is advised. Centralization may increase long-term survival and decrease operative morbidity and mortality even further.


OBJECTIVE
Primary tracheal tumors pose a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge for the physician when confronted with this mostly malignant tumor. Diagnosis is often delayed for months or years due to its aspecific and asthma-mimicking symptoms. Knowledge from retrospective series is limited and few clinicians have gained experience with this tumor. The available literature on the diagnosis and management of this group of tumors is reviewed to summarize the available knowledge about these uncommon tumors. New diagnostic, staging, and treatment guidelines are proposed.


METHODS
PubMed was searched for English publications from 1960. The available literature was reviewed and summarized.


RESULTS
Surgical resection and primary reconstruction is the best curative treatment modality available at present. In centers of experience, more than half of all patients with tracheal cancer may be candidates for surgical resection, although in population-based studies this treatment is applied in only 10-25% of patients.
Honings
Jimmie
J
Department of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology and Head & Neck Surgery, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, the Netherlands. j.honings@kno.umcn.nl <j.honings@kno.umcn.nl>
Gaissert
Henning A
HA
van der Heijden
Henricus F M
HF
Verhagen
Ad F T M
AF
Kaanders
Johannes H A M
JH
Marres
Henri A M
HA
D000402:Airway Obstruction / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D000465:Algorithms; D001999:Bronchoscopy; D003528:Carcinoma, Adenoid Cystic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy; D003371:Cough / Q000209:etiology; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging; D004417:Dyspnea / Q000209:etiology; D006469:Hemoptysis / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D012135:Respiratory Sounds / Q000209:etiology; D015996:Survival Rate; D014132:Trachea / Q000601:surgery; D014134:Tracheal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*