Sue acted on her symptoms and luckily, her lung cancer was caught at an early stage. She then had an upper lobe removal followed by chemotherapy and continues to have the all clear on her check-up scans. Lung cancer is a common cause of finger clubbing ; however, it can occur in other heart and lung diseases. Finger clubbing is a way to describe the ends of your fingers swelling up, caused by excess fluid collecting in the tissue of the fingers.
Repeat chest infections can be exhausting to deal with, they can also be an indicator that there is something more serious going on.
Ruthra Coventry was getting repeat chest infections for two to three years. She put it down to her child bringing bugs home from nursery. I ended up going for surgery because of the location of the mass, as that it kept causing problems. It was then confirmed as lung cancer after my surgery. Now, when I pause for a minute and think about it, I realise just how lucky I am. The more irregularly shaped the nodule is, the more likely it is to be cancer, and the same is true of nodules located in the upper portion of the lung.
The following factors can influence the likelihood that a solo spot on a lung X-ray indicates cancer:. You may be understandably concerned, and having your spot evaluated will give you the information you need. Bowen is an experienced pulmonologist known for his compassionate care, reassuring bedside manner, and for the wide range of diagnostic testing options available in-office.
Once a diagnosis is made, Dr. Bowen will provide you with an explanation of your condition in terms that are simple and easy to understand. You can also get started by making an appointment through our ZocDoc page new patients only or our Patient Portal for existing patients.
Diagnostic testing used to confirm or rule out cancer includes:. Another option is a bronchoscopy where your doctor inserts a scope through the mouth or nose and passes it through your large airways to collect cells.
A pulmonary nodule may be first detected on a chest X-ray. Your doctor may request your medical history and your history of smoking. The first step of the process is examining the size and shape of the nodule. The bigger the nodule, and the more irregular the shape, the greater the risk of it being cancerous.
A CT scan can provide a clear image of the nodule and give more information about the shape, size, and location. If the results from a CT scan reveal that a nodule is small and smooth, your doctor may monitor the nodule over time to see if it changes in size or shape.
In addition to a CT scan, your doctor may order a tuberculin skin test or more commonly an interferon gamma release assay IGRA to check for latent tuberculosis. They may also request that your blood be drawn for additional tests to rule out other causes such as local fungal infections. These may include coccidioidomycosis commonly known as valley fever in the southwestern states like California and Arizona or histoplasmosis in the central and eastern states, especially in areas around the Ohio and Mississippi river valleys.
If a pulmonary nodule is cancerous, your doctor will determine the best course of treatment based on the stage and type of cancer.
Treatment options can include radiation or chemotherapy to kill and prevent the spread of cancer cells. Treatment may also include surgery to remove the tumor. However, quitting smoking is the best way to help prevent cancerous pulmonary nodules.
Early screening may help for those who are at high risk for lung cancer. NTM pulmonary disease can manifest as a solitary pulmonary nodule or mass that mimics lung cancer on a CT scan, making it crucial to distinguish one from the other. A positive culture finding for sputum or bronchial lavage fluid does not exclude the possibility of concomitant lung cancer 4 ; thus, the case authors urge a high degree of suspicion in such patients.
Pulmonary NTM infections have been found in 2. Based on radiologic patterns, NTM pulmonary diseases are classified as fibrocavitary disease, characterized by heterogeneous nodular and cavitary opacities, or as nodular bronchiectatic disease, marked by bronchiectasis and branching centrilobular nodules. The case authors noted that traditionally an SUV of 2. Given the difficulties of accurately distinguishing lung cancer from NTM pulmonary disease in a solitary mass based on imaging, microbiologic procedures such as TBLB and brushing, or lavage during bronchoscopy, are important for diagnosis.
In this case, while the patient's microbiological findings suggested NTM infection, the absence of lung lesions suggestive of NTM pulmonary disease in the pulmonary parenchyma i. Based on their case, the authors concluded that a positive culture result for sputum or bronchial lavage fluid does not exclude the possibility of concomitant lung cancer, 4 even if no malignant cells are seen in a TBLB.
The authors note that although it is not well recognized, chronic NTM-related pulmonary inflammation has been linked to the development of lung cancer, 5,8 and while this patient developed an adenocarcinoma, other data 2,3 suggest a higher proportion of the squamous cell carcinoma subtype in the context of NTM.
In addition, the case report authors note, it is possible that this patient's cancer subtype might reflect the recent increase in the proportions of adenocarcinoma in lung cancer patients. In conclusion, the authors said, physicians should suspect the coexistence of lung cancer and NTM infection in patients with a solitary lung mass and a positive culture result for sputum or bronchial lavage fluid.
Am J Case Rep ;
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