Medical Image of the Week: Squamous Cell Carcinoma Presenting as an Endobronchial Mass

Figure 1. CT axial cut showing large endobronchial mass (arrow) at the junction of the right upper lobe bronchus and bronchus intermedius.

Figure 2. Endobronchial lesion with view from trachea before (Panel A) and after (Panel B) removal by APC.

A 65 year old woman with previously diagnosed emphysema presented with two weeks of worsening dyspnea on exertion. CT scan of the chest showed a 14mm x 12mm irregular endobronchial lesion (arrow) occluding the bronchus intermedius. Right-sided compensatory “ball-valve” emphysematous changes are noted.  Right posterior atelectasis is also seen.  Endobronchial biopsy revealed squamous cell carcinoma. The patient later underwent palliative argon plasma coagulation (APC) therapy with removal of the tumor (Figure 2) with re-expansion of the right middle lobe.

Sage P. Whitmore, MD; James L. Knepler, Jr. MD and Linda Snyder, MD

Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine

Arizona Respiratory Center

University of Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

Reference as: Whitmore SP, Knepler JL Jr, Snyder L. Medical image of the week: squamous cell carcinoma presenting as an endobronchial mass. Southwest J Pulm Crit Care 2013;6(2):85-6. PDF