Posterior Mediastinal Chordoma Resected With Anterior Thoracic Vertebral Body Through Prone Bilateral Thoracic Approaches

Chordomas, rare malignant bone tumors originating from the residual embryonic notochord with a high propensity for local recurrence, require complete resection along with surrounding tissue removal. We report a case of an 18-year-old woman with a chordoma invading the sixth thoracic vertebral body. Because the descending aorta was present along the resection line, tumor resection with partial vertebrectomy was performed using a bilateral thoracic approach with the patient in the prone position. Fifteen months postoperatively, the patient remained recurrence free. This novel surgical approach enabled safe resection without injuring the descending aorta, thus highlighting its potential applicability for complex chordomas involving the thoracic spine.