[Pleomorphic carcinoma of the lung heralded as bilateral leg pain].
This is a case of a 70 year old male patient suffering from bilateral leg pain for 2 months. Physical examination disclosed clubbing. X-rays of the legs showed bilateral periosteal elevation with subperiosteal bone formation. 99TM-diphosphonate bone scan was negative. A search for malignancy revealed pleomorphic carcinoma of the right lung. Pain symptom disappeared 2 days after resection of the tumor. Repeated X-rays of the legs, three and a half months later showed no change and the clubbing persisted. Hence, unexplained bilateral leg pain should raise suspicion of hypertrophic osteoarthropathy, and elicit a search for secondary disease especially lung tumor. It is interesting to point out the negative bone scan and the rapid resolution of patient symptoms after resection of the tumor.
Habib
G
G
Depts. of Medicine B, Neurology and Radiology, Lady Davis Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
Rawashdi
H
H
Peleg
J
J
Saliba
W
W
D000368:Aged; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D004164:Diphosphonates; D006801:Humans; D007866:Leg; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D010146:Pain; D011859:Radiography; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D017556:Technetium Compounds
D004164:Diphosphonates; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D017556:Technetium Compounds; C029045:technetium Tc 99m diphosphonate