title: Pulmonary Kaposi's sarcoma in a female patient: Case report.
abstract: Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is a multicentric lymphoproliferative malignancy. Most of the time this tumor is confined to the skin and subcutaneous tissue, but it can present with widespread visceral involvement, such as in the lung. Pulmonary KS is the most frequent form in young adult males, in a ratio of 15:1. The disease usually affects individuals with low CD4 lymphocyte counts (<150-200 cells/mm3). We report a case of a female patient aged 35 years, with the presence of skin lesions, self-limiting episodes of diarrhea and weight loss of 15 kg for nearly 9 months, progressing to persistent fever. AIDS was diagnosed and biopsy of the lesions revealed Kaposi's sarcoma. Computed tomography of the chest showed peribronchovascular thickening, areas of ground glass opacity, condensations with air bronchograms surrounded by ground glass opacity (halo sign) and bilateral pleural effusion. The diagnosis of pulmonary KS is still a challenge, especially due to the occurrence of other opportunistic diseases that may also occur concurrently. Therefore, suspecting this diagnosis based on clinical and laboratory manifestations, and even more with CT findings, is fundamental, especially in patients who already have the cutaneous form of the disease.
authors.affiliation: MSc - MD and Professor of Radiology and Diagnostic Imaging, Hospital Barão de Lucena, Recife, PE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Natacha Calheiros de Lima
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Petribu
authors.affiliation: Graduate degree - MD, Radiologist, Hospital Barão de Lucena, Recife, PE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Mayana Silva
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Cisneiros
authors.affiliation: Graduate student - Resident Physician in Radiology and Diagnostic Imaging, Hospital Barão de Lucena, Recife, PE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Glauber Barbosa de
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Carvalho
authors.affiliation: Graduate degree - MD, Medical Clinic and Cardiology Resident, Hospital Barão de Lucena, Recife, PE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lucyana de Melo
authors.initials: Lde M
authors.lastname: Baptista
mesh_terms: D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000473:pathology; D000328:Adult; D001706:Biopsy; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology; D012514:Sarcoma, Kaposi / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed