2009 Volume 23 Issue 4 Pages 590-593
There have been only a small number of reported cases of slow-growing adenocarcinoma of the lung with a long clinical history. A 44-year-old man was diagnosed as having goblet cell-type lung adenocarcinoma after a 20-year observation. The patient was found to have a nodular lesion in the left lower lung field, and subsequently underwent anti-tuberculosis therapy. He was followed up thereafter as having a benign disease through chest radiographs at annual medical check-ups for 20 years. In 2006, changes in the size and shape of the abnormal lung shadow were noted. The mass lesion was diagnosed as goblet cell-type adenocarcinoma, and left lower lobectomy of the lung was performed. Without definitive evidence of tubeluculosis, some patients with an abnormal lung shadow were previously treated with anti-tuberculosis drugs, and were prone to be followed by simple examinations such as chest radiographs. The possibility of slow-growing lung carcinoma should be considered even in patients with a long history of medical observations. When a previously stable lung shadow reveals changes in size and shape, further examinations should be performed to facilitate a definitive diagnosis.
