Giant cell carcinoma of the lung

Combined
small cell lung carcinoma and giant cell carcinoma: a case report. Medical imaging findings and gross appearance of the pulmonary nodule. a An abnormal left hilar shadow was observed (white arrow). b, c Contrast-enhanced computed tomography of the chest revealed a solid 28-mm pulmonary nodule at S6 of the left lower lobe (white arrow). c Hilar lymphadenopathy adjacent to the pulmonary artery was also found (asterisk). d FDG uptake was demonstrated in both the S6 nodule and the hilar lymph node
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Combined
large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma with giant cell carcinoma of the lungs: a case report. Imaging findings. (A) Plain chest radiograph revealed a mass in the left middle lung field. (B) Computed tomography (CT) revealed a left lung tumor (28 × 22 mm) with smooth margin. (C) Positron-emission tomography revealed fluorodeoxyglucose accumulation in the mass. (D) Macroscopic appearance of the resected tumor. The tumor was solid and white with a smooth margin.
wjso.biomedcentral.com • CC-by-2.0
Radiopaedia • CC-by-nc-sa 3.0 • de

Giant cell carcinomas of the lung are a rare type of non-small cell lung carcinomas (NSCLC) classified under sarcomatoid carcinomas of the lungs.

Epidemiology

They represent less than 0.5% of all NSCLC . There is a recognized association with smoking .

Clinical presentation

Symptoms are non-specific and, like other types of lung malignancies, may include cough, hemoptysis, chest pain, dyspnea, and weight loss.

Giant cell carcinomas often present with peripheral neutrophilia and fever related to the production of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) .

Pathology

As all the sarcomatoid carcinomas of the lung, diagnosis cannot be achieved on biopsy samples. Giant cell carcinomas are composed mostly of malignant giant cells, without differentiated carcinomatous elements .

Radiographic features 

There are no published specific imaging features for this histological subtype of lung cancer.