Primary Pulmonary Hodgkin's Lymphoma: A case report

ABSTRACT

Primary pulmonary Hodgkin's lymphoma is a rare but distinct entity to be distinguished from nodal Hodgkin's lymphoma and from lymphomas involving lung secondarily. This lymphoma affects women more frequently than men, and typically involves superior portions of the lung. This case is reported to illustrate the clinical, radiographic and anatomic characteristics of the primary pulmonary Hodgkin's lymphoma. A 34-year-old woman presented for the evaluation of hemoptysis. A chest CT revealed a large poorly defined mass in the medial aspect of the right upper lobe, extending to the right mediastinum and trachea. The microscopic examination of the biopsied lesion revealed fibroblastic stroma infiltrated by a mixture of lymphocytes, histiocytes, and eosinophils. The clinical impression was inflammatory pseudotumor, presumably due to slightly favorable response to corticosteroid therapy. Two months later the patient's symptoms worsened despite the steroid therapy and a lobectomy was done. The specimen showed a soft to firm, pale yellow, ill defined mass, 10.0 8.0 cm, involving the visceral pleura. A few satellite nodules around the main mass were noted. The histologic findings were consistent with Hodgkin's lymphoma, nodular sclerosis type.