BENIGN FIBROUS MESOTHELIOMA SUCCESSFULLY TREATED BY THORACOSCOPE-ASSISTED SURGERY - REPORT OF A CASE

We report herein the case of an 84-year-old man in whom a benign fibro us mesothelioma (BFM) was successfully treated by thoracoscope-assiste d surgery. In September 1996, the patient underwent a sigmoidectomy fo r colon cancer, soon after which a followup examination disclosed a co in lesion on his chest X-ray film. The patient was readmitted to our h ospital in November 1996 for further investigation of this tumor, A ch est computed tomography scan revealed a 3.5 x 3.0 cm homogeneous tumor arising from the pleura. A needle biopsy was performed under ultrason ographic guidance, and the specimen was histopathologically diagnosed as a BFM. In view of his poor respiratory function, the tumor was exci sed by thoracoscope-assisted surgery. This case report serves to demon strate the benefits of thoracoscope-assisted surgery for such patients .