Laryngeal Chondroma: A Benign Process with Long-Term Clinical Implications

Abstract

Chondroma of the laryngeal cartilage is a rare, benign neoplasm which can manifest as a neck mass or, if situated within the airway, as slowly progressive obstruction, hoarseness or dyspnea. The most common location for chondroma is the posterior lamina of the cricoid cartilage; the next most common locations are the thyroid, arytenoid and epiglottic cartilages. Chondroma and low-grade chondrosarcoma are difficult to distinguish from one another histologically. Although chondrosarcoma reportedly recurs, local surgical excision without radical margins and with long-term clinical follow-up is recommended. We report one case of thyroid cartilage chondroma and include a review of radiologic studies and histopathologic analysis results. We also report a second case with severe airway obstruction caused by a large cricoid chondroma. A review of the English language biomedical literature on laryngeal chondroma is included.

Laryngeal chondroma: a rare neck tumor in pediatric age

“…Although the incidence of laryngeal chondroma is not clearly known, larynx tumors of cartilage origin comprise less than 1% of all laryngeal tumors and less than 0.12% of all head and neck tumors [3,4]. The etiology of laryngeal chondromas is unclear.…”

“…To our knowledge, this report presents the first pediatric case presenting with an external laryngeal mass, originating from the thyroid cartilage. While more than half of laryngeal chondromas originate from cricoid cartilage, 17% orginate from the thyroid cartilage; 6% from epiglotis; and 3% from the arytenoids [3]. The symptoms of the patient vary depending on the origin of the tumor.…”

“…Depending on the localization of the tumor, the symptoms are usually dyspnea, hoarseness, and mass in the neck [3]. This report presents a case of a 13-year-old girl with laryngeal chondroma arising from thyroid cartilage and presenting as an external laryngeal mass.…”

“…Most commonly originating from cricoid cartilage, these tumors may also develop in epiglotis and arytenoids [3]. Depending on the localization of the tumor, the symptoms are usually dyspnea, hoarseness, and mass in the neck [3].…”

Laryngeal chondroma presenting as an external neck mass

“…The involvement of other laryngeal cartilages, the thyroid, the arytenoid and the epiglottis has also been reported in a decreasing order. Chondroid tumors of the larynx are more common in men than in women, and the peak incidence rate is in the 6th and 7th decades [2,3].…”