Liposarcomas are rare entities and those located in the neck and mediastinum are exceptional. We report the case of a 58 year-old Caucasian male who presented with dysphonia, mild dysphagia to solids, dyspnoea at exertion and cough due to a giant mass of the neck originating from the deep cervical space at C6 vertebral level spreading into the posterior mediastinum. The lesion, that was associated with a right vocal cord palsy, caused severe lateral displacement of the trachea and oesophagus. The case has been managed by complete surgical resection through a combined cervical and thoracic approach associated with a tracheostomy due to the risk of bilateral recurrent nerve dysfunction at the end of the intervention. The tumour was diagnosed as a encapsulated low-grade liposarcoma. Six months after surgery the tracheostomy was closed. At 24 months clinical and radiological follow-up the patient is doing well and disease free.
Keywords: Liposarcoma; Mediastinum; Neck; Soft tissue tumour; Surgery.
Copyright © 2015 Australian and New Zealand Society of Cardiac and Thoracic Surgeons (ANZSCTS) and the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand (CSANZ). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.