Laryngeal chondrosarcoma: incidence, pathology, biological behavior, and treatment

Chondrosarcoma is the most common mesenchymal tumor of the larynx and approximately 200 cases have been collected in the world medical literature. It is less aggressive in the larynx than elsewhere: cervical or distant metastases are rare (8.5%), and although local recurrences are not uncommon, they are not catastrophic. A retrospective study was made on eight cases of laryngeal chondrosarcoma. Three cases had originally been diagnosed as idiopathic vocal cord paralysis, possibly because of early involvement of the cricoarytenoid joint or the distal portion of the recurrent nerve. This fact emphasizes the need for accurate laryngeal computed tomography in cases of vocal cord paralysis of unknown origin. Surgical excision is the treatment of choice for laryngeal chondrosarcoma, and conservative techniques may sometimes be appropriate. Supraglottic laryngectomy may be the technique of choice in the rare cases of epiglottic involvement.