title: Biphasic pulmonary blastoma with germ cell differentiation in a 36-year-old man.
abstract: We describe the clinical and pathologic findings of a young man with a heterogeneous mediastinal tumor metastatic to both lungs, and containing a predominant pattern of classic biphasic pulmonary blastoma with elements of immature teratoma, seminoma, and embryonal carcinoma. Beta-human chorionic gonadotropin and alpha-fetoprotein were elevated at presentation and responded to four cycles of bleomycin, etoposide, and cisplatin although the tumor did not regress. The patient ultimately progressed through paclitaxel, ifosfamide, and cisplatin and tandem autologous bone marrow transplants. Classic biphasic pulmonary blastoma is a rare tumor of young adults. Surgery is the primary treatment, but prognosis is poor and chemotherapy and radiation have been used for unresectable disease. A discussion of pulmonary blastoma and extragonadal germ cell tumors is presented.
authors.affiliation: Providence Portland Medical Center, Portland, OR, USA.
authors.forename: Patrick H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Archie
authors.forename: Mary Beth
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Beasley
authors.forename: Helen J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Ross
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D018997:Chorionic Gonadotropin, beta Subunit, Human / Q000032:analysis; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008479:Mediastinal Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D009373:Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D009378:Neoplasms, Multiple Primary / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D018202:Pulmonary Blastoma / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D018997:Chorionic Gonadotropin, beta Subunit, Human; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins