Bronchial mucoepidermoid carcinoma in a 12-year-old boy : a case report and literature review

Lung cancer in young patients is rare, which might be ignored or misdiagnosed empirically. Herein, a primary pulmonary mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) was found in a 12-year-old boy, which was indicated pathologically through transbronchial biopsy. Single-stage bilobectomy of right middle and right lower lobes was performed, and a complete surgical resection of the tumor was achieved. The patient survived without local recurrence or distant metastasis during the follow up of 1 year. Because of its rarity, the diagnosis and therapy of lung cancer in very young patients might be delayed. Therefore, primary lung cancer should be kept in mind during the differential diagnosis of obstructive pneumonia or atelectasis in young patients to avoid empirical misdiagnosis. Besides, a timely aggressive resection of localized pulmonary MEC may lead to a satisfactory prognosis.

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