Korean J Radiol.  2013 Apr;14(2):384-388. 10.3348/kjr.2013.14.2.384.

Pulmonary Mucinous Cystadenocarcinoma: Report a Case and Review of CT Findings

• Choi YA
• Lee HY
• Han J
• Choi JY
• Kim J
• Kwon OJ
• Lee KS

• KMID: 1482803
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3348/kjr.2013.14.2.384

Abstract

A pulmonary mucinous cystadenocarcinoma is an extremely rare tumor that is considered to be a cystic variant of mucin-producing lung adenocarcinoma. We present a case of pulmonary mucinous cystadenocarcinoma in a 54-year-old woman. Chest CT scans showed a 4.3-cm-sized, lobulated, well-defined, and homogeneous mass in the right middle lobe with peripheral stippled calcifications that demonstrated low-attenuation with no enhancement after contrast administration; 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/CT demonstrated mild heterogeneous FDG uptake. The mass was diagnosed as adenocarcinoma with mucin production by transbronchial lung biopsy. Right middle lobectomy was performed, and the pathologic examination disclosed a pulmonary mucinous cystadenocarcinoma.

Keyword

Pulmonary mucinous cystadenocarcinoma; Lung cancer; CT; PET/CT

MeSH Terms

Cystadenocarcinoma, Mucinous/pathology/*radiography/surgery
Diagnosis, Differential
Female
Fluorodeoxyglucose F18/diagnostic use
Humans
Lung Neoplasms/pathology/*radiography/surgery
Middle Aged
Positron-Emission Tomography and Computed Tomography
Radiopharmaceuticals/diagnostic use
Tomography, X-Ray Computed/*methods
Radiopharmaceuticals
Fluorodeoxyglucose F18

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1 54-year-old woman with pulmonary mucinous cystadenocarcinoma. A. Non-enhanced, coronal-reformatted, and lung-window CT scan shows 4.3-cm-sized lobulated mass in right middle lobe. B. Non-enhanced, trans-axial, and mediastinal-window CT scan demonstrates lobulated, well-defined, and low-attenuation (5.7 Hounsfield unit) mass with peripheral stippled calcifications (arrows). C. Enhanced CT scan exhibits persistent-low attenuation nature of lesion. D. PET-CT scan reveals lesion with minimal heterogeneous 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake. E. Gross photograph demonstrating lobulated cystic mass filled with yellow, gelatinous substance (arrows). F. Photomicrograph demonstrating multi-locular, mucin-filled cysts surrounded by thick fibrous walls (arrows). Wall of cyst is lined by tall columnar epithelial cells with cytologic mucin. Hematoxylin and Eosin staining. F × 40 (inset × 400).

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