Pulmonary Sclerosing Pneumocytomas Mimicking Lung Cancer

Abstract

Pulmonary sclerosing pneumocytomas are benign tumors. These tumors are often found incidentally and can be challenging to distinguish from lung malignancies. Here, we describe the case of a 31-year-old woman who presented with an incidental finding of a lung nodule in the lingula. She was asymptomatic and had no history of cancer. Positron emission tomography showed [18F] fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake in the nodule but no FDG-avid mediastinal lymphadenopathy. In view of these findings, a bronchoscopy was performed, and biopsy samples were taken. The final pathological diagnosis revealed a sclerosing pneumocytoma.

Revisiting Pulmonary Sclerosing Pneumocytoma

“…Pulmonary sclerosing pneumocytoma (PSP), formerly sclerosing hemangioma [ 1 ], is a rare pulmonary tumor with a varied histological morphology [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ], which makes its correct diagnosis a challenging task in some practical situations [ 7 , 8 ]. This tumor usually presents as a solitary nodule sometimes mimicking pulmonary carcinoma [ 9 ]; however, multiple PSPs have also been reported [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ]. Although traditionally considered a benign tumor, some recent series have detected malignant features at least in a subset of cases [ 14 ], including sarcomatoid dedifferentiation [ 6 ], local recurrence [ 15 , 16 ], and metastatic seed [ 4 , 5 , 17 ].…”