Typical pulmonary carcinoid tumour is a subtype of pulmonary carcinoid tumour. It is an uncommon low-grade malignant

lung The lungs are the primary Organ (biology), organs of the respiratory system in many animals, including humans. In mammals and most other tetrapods, two lungs are located near the Vertebral column, backbone on either side of the heart. Their ...

mass that is most often in the central airways of the lung.

Signs and symptoms

Lung carcinoids typically present with a

cough A cough is a sudden expulsion of air through the large breathing passages which can help clear them of fluids, irritants, foreign particles and Microorganism, microbes. As a protective reflex, coughing can be repetitive with the cough reflex fol ...

hemoptysis Hemoptysis or haemoptysis is the discharge of blood or blood-stained sputum, mucus through the mouth coming from the bronchi, larynx, vertebrate trachea, trachea, or lungs. It does not necessarily involve coughing. In other words, it is the airw ...

. Findings may closely mimic

malignant Malignancy () is the tendency of a medical condition to become progressively worse; the term is most familiar as a characterization of cancer. A ''malignant'' tumor contrasts with a non-cancerous benign tumor, ''benign'' tumor in that a malig ...

tumours of the lung, i.e.

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

Diagnosis

The definitive diagnosis is rendered by a microscopic examination, after excision. Typical carcinoids have cells with stippled chromatin and a moderate quantity of

cytoplasm The cytoplasm describes all the material within a eukaryotic or prokaryotic cell, enclosed by the cell membrane, including the organelles and excluding the nucleus in eukaryotic cells. The material inside the nucleus of a eukaryotic cell a ...

. They typically have few

mitoses Mitosis () is a part of the cell cycle in eukaryotic cells in which replicated chromosomes are separated into two new nuclei. Cell division by mitosis is an equational division which gives rise to genetically identical cells in which the ...

and lack

necrosis Necrosis () is a form of cell injury which results in the premature death of cells in living tissue by autolysis. The term "necrosis" came about in the mid-19th century and is commonly attributed to German pathologist Rudolf Virchow, who i ...

. By definition, they are greater than 4 mm in largest dimension; smaller lesions are referred to as ''pulmonary carcinoid tumourlets''. The differential diagnosis of typical pulmonary carcinoid tumour includes: '' atypical pulmonary carcinoid tumour'', ''pulmonary carcinoid tumourlet'' and ''

lung adenocarcinoma Adenocarcinoma of the lung is the most common type of lung cancer, and like other forms of lung cancer, it is characterized by distinct cellular and molecular features. It is classified as one of several non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC), to d ...

''. Image: Lung carcinoid - very high mag.jpg , Very high magnification File:Typical carcinoid tumor of the lung, prominent rosettes.jpg, With prominent rosettes

Signs and symptoms

Diagnosis

Treatment

See also

References

External links