[Endobronchial chondroma--bronchoscopic resection or thoracic surgery intervention?]

Endobronchial chondromas as a rare form of benign tumors of the bronchial tree lead not only to diagnostic problems because of the unspecific often latent pattern of symptoms, but also to therapeutic difficulties because of the macroscopic findings and the poststenotic changes of the bronchial tree and the lung parenchyma. In case of a 75-year old female patient the various therapeutic possibilities are discussed. The therapy must be individual and consider the extent of simultaneous lung changes and the general criteria of operability in thoracic surgery.