A Case of Primary Lung Cancer Detected Incidentally to Hemopneumothorax

A 46-year-old man consulted a doctor for chest pain. From the findings of a chest roentgenography, it was diagnosed as right hemopneumothorax. At insertion of a chest drain, bloody pleural effusion, in a volume of 1200 ml, flowed out. Chest roentgenography and computed tomography showed a nodule in the right upper lobe . For the hemopneumothorax, video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) was performed . An old bleeding spot was identified in the parietal pleura. Immediately below the bulla at the apex of the lung, a nodal tumor, 1.5cm in diameter, was found. Partial resection of the apex of the right lung, inclusive of the tumor, was carried out. During postoperative pathological examination, it was diagnosed as large cell carcinoma, and a right upper lobectomy was performed by thoracotomy two weeks after the first operation. Postoperatively, two sessions of chemotherapy with Vindesine and Cisplatin were administerd. Presently, one year and 10 months after the second surgery, no sign of recurrence has been found and the patient is doing well. It's rare that primary lung cancer is found incidentally to hemopneumothorax. We report this case and refer to previous cases of pneumothorax complicated with lung cancer.