title: [A sore throat: tumour, tuberculosis or both?].
abstract: The incidence of tuberculosis in the Netherlands has dropped dramatically over the past 50 years. With declining experience of tuberculosis, misdiagnosis can easily happen. Laryngeal tuberculosis often presents as a tumorous mass that may initially be mistaken for cancer. As laryngeal tuberculosis is usually highly infectious, this poses a risk to the patient as well as his/her contacts including healthcare providers. We describe three patients with (suspected) laryngeal tuberculosis and discuss potential pitfalls. Pivotal for a correct diagnosis are thorough history-taking, physical examination and relatively simple radiological and laboratory tests. Risk groups have been identified for tuberculosis and this can provide a clue. Differentiation between tuberculosis and cancer can be difficult, and the two diseases may concur. Even in low-incidence settings for tuberculosis, knowledge of the disease remains necessary as it is curable and further spread can be prevented with simple measures.
authors.affiliation: Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Universitair Medisch Centrum Groningen, Groningen.
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: van der Sar-van der Brugge
authors.forename: Onno W
authors.initials: OW
authors.lastname: Akkerman
authors.forename: Bernard F A M
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: van der Laan
authors.forename: Wiel C M
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: de Lange
authors.forename: Tjip S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: van der Werf
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D009959:Oropharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D010612:Pharyngitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D014374:Tuberculin Test; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology