Case Report
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Jun 26, 2023; 11(18): 4326-4333
Published online Jun 26, 2023. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v11.i18.4326
Endometriosis of the lung: A case report and review of literature
Jin Yao, Hong Zheng, Hui Nie, Cheng-Fang Li, Wen Zhang, Jin-Jing Wang
Jin Yao, Hong Zheng, Hui Nie, Cheng-Fang Li, Wen Zhang, Jin-Jing Wang, Department of Pathology, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi 563000, Guizhou Province, China
Author contributions: Yao J and Li CF contributed to manuscript writing, editing, and data collection; Nie H contributed to data analysis; Zhang W contributed to conceptualization and supervision; All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Supported by Zunshi Kehe HZ word, No. (2022)253.
Informed consent statement: Informed written consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this report and any accompanying images.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to CARE Checklist (2016).
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Jin-Jing Wang, PhD, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Pathology, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, No. 149 Dalian Road, Huichuan District, Zunyi 563000, Guizhou Province, China. wangjinjing2018@163.com
Received: March 14, 2023
Peer-review started: March 14, 2023
First decision: April 19, 2023
Revised: May 5, 2023
Accepted: May 23, 2023
Article in press: May 23, 2023
Published online: June 26, 2023
Processing time: 104 Days and 6 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Lung endometriosis is an extremely rare gynecological disease. Current literature reports suggest that the majority of patients will present with only generic symptoms, such as hemoptysis, pneumothorax, and hemopneumothorax, which often leads to misdiagnosis. To date, there are 18 case reports of lung endometriosis that describe the clinical manifestation, imaging changes, treatment, and prognosis of the disease. To provide further insights into this rare disease, we present a new case report and a brief review of pulmonary endometriosis.

CASE SUMMARY

We report here about a 19-year-old woman who was admitted to the hospital for repeated catamenial hemoptysis over a 3-mo period. computed tomography (CT) imaging during menstruation revealed patchy high-density shadows, approximately 0.5 cm3 in size, in the right middle lobe of the lung. The patient’s hemoptysis and changes in the CT scans resolved after menstruation. Thoracoscopic right middle lobectomy, right lower lung repair, and closed thoracic drainage were performed. Postoperative histopathology confirmed lung endometriosis. There was no recurrence of symptoms at the 6 mo follow-up.

CONCLUSION

We propose diagnosing lung endometriosis by thoroughly taking reproductive history, clinical details, imaging, and histopathology followed by treatment with surgical resection.

Keywords: Lung endometriosis; Immunophenotype; Differential diagnosis; Pathogenesis; Case report

Core Tip: Lung endometriosis, a form of extra-endometrial growth of the endometrial glands or stroma, is an extremely rare disease with complex etiology and can easily be misdiagnosed. No comprehensive treatment guidelines exist for lung endometriosis. Understanding the relationship between medical history and clinical manifestations will help in the diagnosis and timely treatment of endometriosis. We propose an integrated approach for diagnosing, combining reproductive history taking, clinical details, imaging, and histopathology followed by treatment with surgical resection.