Primary Endobronchial Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma in a Pediatric Patient

Abstract

The authors describe a pediatric patient who presented with a 3-month history of dry cough, chest pain, progressive breathlessness, fever and recurrent pneumonia with atelectasis. A fiberoptic bronchoscopy revealed a whitish lesion at the left bronchus. A biopsy of the lesion demonstrated an anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL). Evaluation for disseminated disease was negative. After the patient completed chemotherapy the lesion abated and she has been in complete remission for almost 4 years. Although extranodal involvement of ALCL is frequent at some stage of the disease, endobronchial involvement is extremely rare even in the presence of advanced disease. To our knowledge, this is the first primary isolated endobronchial ALCL described in a pediatric patient.