Efficacy of Oophorectomy in Lymphangioleiomyomatosis and Benign Metastasizing Leiomyoma

PROLIFERATION of smooth muscle within the lung can occur as a nonspecific finding in a variety of chronic lung diseases; it can also be the major histologic manifestation in two clinical entities: benign metastasizing leiomyoma (BML) and lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM). BML occurs predominantly in women and is thought to represent metastasis from a smooth-muscle tumor, usually a benign-appearing leiomyoma of the uterus. LAM occurs exclusively in women, usually during the child-bearing years, and is characterized by proliferation of smooth muscle along the lymphatic vessels of the abdomen, thorax, and lung, resulting in interstitial and obstructive lung disease, recurrent pneumothoraxes, and chylous . . .