A novel hybrid approach for enucleation of esophageal leiomyoma

Esophageal leiomyoma is the most common benign tumor of the esophagus, which usually arises from the muscularis propria or muscularis mucosae. Incidence of benign esophageal neoplasms was reported to be in the range of 0.005% to 7.9% in autopsy cases, while leiomyomas account for 70–80% of them (1). Options for management include surveillance for small-sized tumors and surgical or endoscopic resection for large or symptomatic ones. Leiomyoma is commonly located in the lower two-thirds of the esophagus. In open surgery, right-sided surgical approach is preferred for lesions in the middle and upper esophagus, and left-sided approach for those in the distal lower esophagus. Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for esophageal leiomyoma was first described by Everitt in 1992 (2,3). As scattered researches reported, enucleation of benign esophageal tumors can be performed effectively and safely with low morbidity (4-6), mostly through right-sided approach. The major complication after the enucleation of esophageal leiomyomas is mucosal injury, which may lead to esophageal leakage or perforation. We hereby report a novel approach using combined thoracoscopy and endoscopy to facilitate tumor removal and prevent mucosal injury.