What is Pulmonary Blastoma or Blastoma of Lung?
Pulmonary blastoma is a rare type of lung cancer that consists of a mixture of immature epithelial and mesenchymal tissues. It usually comes from the tissues of the lungs or the pleura (the pleura are the membrane that covers the outside of the lung and the chest cavity). It can also develop in the heart’s aorta, pulmonary artery, or diaphragm. It accounts for 0.25% to 0.5% of all lung cancer cases. It shows an unfavorable prognosis (probable course of the disease). The five-year survival rate is approximately 15%.Disease Causes
The change in the DICER1 gene is the main cause of the development of pulmonary blastoma.Signs and Symptoms
Signs and symptoms depend on the extent and spread of the disease to other organs or parts of the body. If the cancer is limited to the lungs, the patient will only experience signs and symptoms of the respiratory system. At the same time, in cases where this cancer spreads to other parts of the body, the patient also experiences B symptoms of cancer.General respiratory symptoms of blastoma lung
- Persistent cough
- Dyspnea (shortness of breath or difficulty in breathing)
- Chest pain that worsens with coughing, laughing and breathing deeply
- Coughing up blood
- Wheezing without having asthma history
- Clubbing of the fingers and nails (A physical sign characterized by a bulging extension at the ends of one or more fingers or toes).
The following are the general B symptoms (systemic symptoms) of blastoma lungs when it spreads to other organs of the body. These are
- Fever
- Fatigue
- Night sweats
- Weight loss
- Bone pains
Diagnosis
The following diagnostic tests and procedures can be used to make a diagnosis. These are;- Imaging techniques like Chest X-ray, CT-scan, MRI, and PET scan to see the site, size, and extent of the tumor.
- Tumor biopsy ( lung tumor biopsy to remove a small sample of lung tissue for histopathological examination)
- Sputum cytology
- USG guided fine needle aspiration cytology