Typical pulmonary carcinoid tumour is a subtype of
pulmonary carcinoid tumour
Pulmonary carcinoid tumour is a neuroendocrine tumour of the lung
The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other ver ...
. It is an uncommon low-grade malignant
lung
The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other vertebrates, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of t ...
mass that is most often in the central airways of the lung.
Signs and symptoms
Lung carcinoids typically present with a
cough
A cough is a sudden expulsion of air through the large breathing passages that can help clear them of fluids, irritants, foreign particles and microbes. As a protective reflex, coughing can be repetitive with the cough reflex following three pha ...
or
hemoptysis
Hemoptysis is the coughing up of blood or blood-stained mucus from the bronchi, larynx, trachea, or lungs. In other words, it is the airway bleeding. This can occur with lung cancer, infections such as tuberculosis, bronchitis, or pneumonia, and ...
.
Findings may closely mimic
malignant
Malignancy () is the tendency of a medical condition to become progressively worse.
Malignancy is most familiar as a characterization of cancer. A ''malignant'' tumor contrasts with a non-cancerous ''benign'' tumor in that a malignancy is not s ...
tumours of the lung, i.e.
lung cancer
Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...
.
Diagnosis
![Peripheral typical carcinoid tumor - CT scan - Case 266 (8583455406)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Peripheral_typical_carcinoid_tumor_-_CT_scan_-_Case_266_%288583455406%29.jpg)
The definitive diagnosis is rendered by a
microscopic examination, after excision. Typical carcinoids have cells with
stippled chromatin
In pathology, salt-and-pepper chromatin, also salt-and-pepper nuclei and stippled chromatin, refers to cell nuclei that demonstrate granular chromatin (on light microscopy).
Salt-and-pepper chromatin is typically seen in endocrine tumours such as ...
and a moderate quantity of
cytoplasm
In cell biology, the cytoplasm is all of the material within a eukaryotic cell, enclosed by the cell membrane, except for the cell nucleus. The material inside the nucleus and contained within the nuclear membrane is termed the nucleoplasm. The ...
. They typically have few
mitoses
In cell biology, mitosis () is a part of the cell cycle in which replicated chromosomes are separated into two new nuclei. Cell division by mitosis gives rise to genetically identical cells in which the total number of chromosomes is maintai ...
and lack
necrosis
Necrosis () is a form of cell injury which results in the premature death of cells in living tissue by autolysis. Necrosis is caused by factors external to the cell or tissue, such as infection, or trauma which result in the unregulated dige ...
. By definition, they are greater than 4 mm in largest dimension; smaller lesions are referred to as ''pulmonary carcinoid tumourlets''.
The differential diagnosis of typical pulmonary carcinoid tumour includes: ''
atypical pulmonary carcinoid tumour
Atypical pulmonary carcinoid tumour is a subtype of pulmonary carcinoid tumor. It is an uncommon low-grade malignant lung mass that is most often in the central airways of the lung. It is also known as "atypical lung carcinoid tumour", " atypica ...
'', ''pulmonary carcinoid tumourlet'' and ''
lung adenocarcinoma
Adenocarcinoma of the lung is the most common type of lung cancer, and like other forms of lung cancer, it is characterized by distinct cellular and molecular features. It is classified as one of several non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC), to d ...
''.
Image: Lung carcinoid - very high mag.jpg , Very high magnification
File:Typical carcinoid tumor of the lung, prominent rosettes.jpg, With prominent rosettes
Treatment
Typical carcinoids are usually treated with surgical excision.
See also
*
Pulmonary tumor
Lung tumors are neoplastic lung nodules. These include:
Primary tumors of the lung/pulmonary system:
* Bronchial leiomyoma, a rare, benign tumor
* Lung cancer, the term commonly used to refer to ''carcinoma of the lung''
* Pulmonary carcinoid tu ...
*
Lung cancer
Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...
*
Atypical pulmonary carcinoid tumour
Atypical pulmonary carcinoid tumour is a subtype of pulmonary carcinoid tumor. It is an uncommon low-grade malignant lung mass that is most often in the central airways of the lung. It is also known as "atypical lung carcinoid tumour", " atypica ...
*
Pulmonary neuroendocrine tumor Pulmonary neuroendocrine tumors are neuroendocrine tumors localized to the lung: bronchus or pulmonary parenchyma.
Pulmonary neuroendocrine tumors include a spectrum of tumors from the low-grade typical pulmonary carcinoid tumor and intermediate- ...
References
External links
Lung carcinoids (cancer.org)
{{Respiratory neoplasia
Pulmonary tumour