Epithelioid haemangioendothelioma of the lung imitating clinical features of pulmonary histiocytosis X.

ABSTRACT

A young male who was a heavy smoker presented with spontaneous right pneumothorax. A high resolution computed tomography scan showed disseminated nodules up to 1 cm in diameter; the greatest majority of which were sited in the centrilobular zone, though some abutted on the pleural surface. Surgical lung biopsies allowed a diagnosis of epithelioid haemangioendothelioma. The neoplastic tissue infiltrated the wall of bronchioles, partially obliterating them and the visceral pleura. These two histological aspects could be considered as concomitant mechanisms for the appearance of spontaneous pneumothorax. Epithelioid haemangioendothelioma should be added to the list of lung diseases in young heavy smokers that can begin with a spontaneous pneumothorax.