Gradually worsening dyspnea and dry cough in an elderly patient

Monaldi Arch Chest Dis. 2017 Jul 18;87(2):834. doi: 10.4081/monaldi.2017.834.

Abstract

Primary tracheal chondrosarcomas are an extremely rare condition that affect adult of all ages, 24% being more that 70 years old. The progression may be slow, with symptoms that may continue up to 72 months before diagnosis is made. The clinical manifestations, that include a combination of nonproductive cough, wheezing, and dyspnea without hemoptysis often leads to misdiagnosis of asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. We report a case of an 87-year-old male, a Medical Doctor, with such a history, in whom a diagnosis of a tracheal chondrosarcoma was finally performed, 12 months after the first manifestation of the disease.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Bronchoscopy / methods
  • Chondrosarcoma / diagnostic imaging*
  • Chondrosarcoma / pathology
  • Cough / diagnosis
  • Cough / etiology
  • Diagnosis, Differential
  • Dyspnea / diagnosis
  • Dyspnea / etiology
  • Fatal Outcome
  • Heart Failure
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / diagnostic imaging*
  • Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / drug therapy
  • Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / physiopathology
  • Tomography, X-Ray Computed / methods
  • Tracheal Neoplasms / diagnostic imaging*
  • Tracheal Neoplasms / pathology