2013 Volume 35 Issue 2 Pages 150-155
Background. Bronchoesophageal fistula in lung cancer is very rare. While these cases usually receive an implanted expandable stent in the esophagus or trachea, no standard therapeutic strategy has been developed. Case. Our patient was a 63-year-old woman who had visited a local clinic because of productive cough. Lung cancer was suspected from her chest CT findings and an additional work-up with bronchoscopy and sputum cytology revealed squamous cell cancer of the lung. She also had obstructive pneumonia caused by a severe stricture from the trachea to the left main bronchus. Radiochemotherapy was begun for treatment of the obstruction by the tumor, with concurrent administration of antibiotics. In spite of apparent improvement of the disease by the fifth week of treatment, a large bronchoesophageal fistula appeared at the inlet of the left main bronchus. Stent implantation was judged contraindicated for either the trachea or the esophagus, because of the large size of the fistula. We performed an esophageal bypass procedure in an attempt to restore her dysphagia. She regained oral intake ability and she required no antibiotic administration for pneumonia after the procedure. Conclusion. We performed an esophageal bypass for the treatment of a bronchoesophageal fistula that had occurred during radiochemotherapy for lung cancer. The procedure was successful and the patient regained the ability to eat from the mouth. The esophageal bypass procedure might be a viable choice of treatment for tracheo- or bronchoesophageal fistula in lung cancer patients.
