A Case of Gingival Metastasis of Pulmonary Anaplastic Carcinoma

Background. Gingival metastasis from lung cancer is very uncommon. Case. A 51-year-old woman was referred to our hospital because of a large tumor mass shadow in the right middle lobe on chest roentgenogram and the left mandibular gingival swelling. The gingival tumor, which grew rapidly, was resected and anaplastic carcinoma was diagnosed histopathologically. Thereafter, CT-guided lung biopsy also revealed that the pulmonary lesion was histopathologically similar to the gingival tumor and no distant metastatic lesions other than the gingiva were observed by systemic examination. Thus, pulmonary pleomorphic carcinoma with gingival metastasis was suspected. Even two cycles of combination chemotherapy of carboplatin and etoposide could not prevent the tumor growth and emergence of pleural effusion. Eventually, the patient died on the 76th hospital day. Conclusion. The prognosis of lung cancer with gingival metastasis is very poor. Early detection and appropriate therapy are necessary.