Images in Clinical Medicine
“Popcorn” Calcifications in a Pulmonary Chondroid Hamartoma
N Engl J Med 2009; 360:e17March 19, 2009
- Article
A 22-year-old man was referred to us for evaluation of an asymptomatic mass in the left upper lung that had been detected on chest radiography (Panel A, arrow) performed during a physical screening before the start of military service. He was a nonsmoker, had no pulmonary symptoms, and was otherwise well. Nonenhanced computed tomography (CT) of the chest revealed a well-defined mass, 3 cm in diameter, in the left upper lobe, containing multiple calcifications (Panel B, arrow). A magnified (wide-window) image of the mass showed calcifications of a linear, nodular, irregular shape, known as “popcorn” calcifications. The CT findings were highly suggestive of pulmonary chondroid hamartoma. Pathological examination of tissue obtained by means of percutaneous biopsy revealed cartilage and spindle-cell mesenchymal stroma, confirming the diagnosis. Two years later, the patient remains well, and the tumor is unchanged. Pulmonary hamartoma is a benign lung tumor that should be considered when an incidental solitary pulmonary nodule is identified. Popcorn calcifications within a well-circumscribed pulmonary nodule are highly suggestive of pulmonary chondroid hamartoma.
Chang Min Park, M.D.
Jin Mo Goo, M.D.
Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul 110-744, South Korea
cmpark@radiol.snu. ac. kr - Citing Articles (1)
Citing Articles
1
Yoshinobu Hata, Kazutoshi Isobe, Shuichi Sasamoto, Kazuyoshi Tamaki, Shoji Takahashi, Fumitomo Sato, Aki Mitsuda, Yoichiro Okubo, Kazutoshi Shibuya, Sakae Homma, Keigo Takagi. (2010) Pulmonary Hamartoma Diagnosed by Convex Probe Endobronchial Ultrasound-Guided Transbronchial Needle Aspiration (EBUS-TBNA). Internal Medicine 49:12, 1171-1173
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