Juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma: spontaneous resolution

Abstract

Juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma is a rare, benign tumor that occurs most often in adolescent males. Common practice is to excise the tumor with open or endoscopic surgery. We report the case of a 17-year-old male who presented in 1995 with a mass filling the left posterior nasal cavity. A diagnosis of juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma was obtained with computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. The patient elected to have no treatment. On annual scans, the lesion changed little until 1998, when it began to gradually decrease in size. Although it is not well proven, the natural history of these tumors seems to be regression over time. This case supports the argument that a policy of watchful waiting with regular imaging studies may postpone or eliminate the need for surgery and its attendant risks.