Medica Jadertina, Vol. 44 No. 3-4, 2014.
Professional paper
Mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the lung - case report and literature review
Veljko Flego
orcid.org/0000-0002-6333-9883
; Clinical hospital Rijeka, Division for pulmology
Abstract
Mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) is a rare primary malignancy of the tracheobronchial tree and comprising 0.1 – 0.2% of primary lung cancers. The tumour is composed of epithelial cells, mucus secreting
cells and cells of an intermediate type identical to those occurring in the salivary glands. The prognosis depends on the histological grade. We report the case of a 27-year-old woman who was four months sub
febrile before referring to a physician. Chest radiography revealed a mass shadow measuring 50 mm in diameter in the left upper lung field. Chest CT showed a lobulated mass shadow measuring 50 x 27 mm in which there were hypo dense zones. The tumour was pressed into the left main bronchus, and was obstructing it. No mediastinal lymph node metastasis or other organ metastases were observed.
Bronchoscopy revealed a tumour obstructing the entry of left B1+2 bronchus. Pathohistological and immunohistochemical findings of tumour forceps biopsy lead to diagnosis of low-grade MEC. The patient underwent left upper lobe resection and mediastinal lymphadenectomy. Macroscopic findings showed a yellowish well-confined tumour node 35 mm in diameter in the lumen of the main bronchus. The tumour tissue was mainly located in the lumen of the bronchus, and penetrated the wall of the bronchus and entered
in the underlying lung tissue. The tumour did not affect the pleura. There were no tumour cells in the resected lymph nodes. No adjuvant treatment was administered. Fifteen months after surgery she gave birth to a third healthy son. The patient remains in remission after 37 months of follow-up from tumour resection.
Keywords
mucoepidermoid carcinoma; lung cancer; surgical treatment
Hrčak ID:
133155
URI
Publication date:
14.1.2015.
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