Computed tomography patterns of pulmonary and pleural involvement in lymphoma.

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary and pleural involvement is fairly common in patients with lymphoma, especially in the setting of progressive or recurrent disease. Pleuropulmonary involvement in lymphoma may occur as a single pattern or as a combination of multiple patterns which can often mimic unrelated pathologies. METHODS: Review of our institutional database from 01 Jan 2015 to 04 Oct 2017 revealed 90 patients with pulmonary and/or pleural lesions attributable to lymphoma. These lesions were classified into various categories, and the pattern of involvement was evaluated. RESULTS: Pulmonary involvement was seen in 17.6% of patients with Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and in 10.5% of patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), whereas pleural involvement was seen in 6.5% of patients with NHL. Almost all the patients in our study had findings belonging to multiple categories. Pulmonary involvement in patients with HL was seen in the form of nodules (51.6%), masses (51.6%), and direct extension from a mediastinal/hilar mass (45.2%). Patients with NHL had pulmonary involvement in the form of nodules (42.4%), direct extension from a mediastinal/hilar mass (25.4%), pulmonary masses (18.6%), and interstitial pattern (2.4%). Pleural thickening (61.5%), masses (30.8%), and effusion (15.4%) were the three patterns of pleural involvement. CONCLUSION: Nodules and masses were the two commonest patterns of pulmonary involvement in patients with HL, whereas nodules were the commonest pattern noted in patients with NHL. Pulmonary masses were seen more commonly in patients with HL than in those with NHL. Pleural involvement was seen exclusively in patients with NHL.

Unusual Metastasis of Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma to the Breast: A Cytological and Histopathological Correlation.

Breast metastases are a relatively rare condition and account for approximately 0.5-2% of all breast tumors. Recognition of metastatic tumors in the breast is important because it would prevent unnecessary mutilating surgery and would lead to appropriate treatment of the primary tumor. Breast metastases from medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) are very rare with only 21 reported cases in the literature. Some MTCs mimic primary invasive lobular carcinoma of the breast histopathologically and radiologically, making the distinction between the two diagnostically challenging. We present the case of a 45-year-old female presenting with a lump breast, which was later found out to be metastasis from medullary carcinoma thyroid.