Thoracic involvement with pheochromocytoma - A review

Pulmonary manifestations of pheochromocytoma are infrequent and are not wel l documented. A MEDLINE search in the English language revealed no cases of endobronchial involvement from a pheochromocytoma. We report a case of end obronchial metastases in a 37-year-old woman known to have a recurrent extr a-adrenal pheochromocytoma. She presented with symptoms of wheezing and a n onproductive cough for 8 months and was being treated for asthma. A flexibl e bronchoscopy with endobronchial biopsy established the diagnosis. The pat ient underwent a Nd-YAG laser photoresection (LPR) to ablate the tumor, whi ch was followed by placement of a Wallstent (Pfizer Medical Technology Grou p; Rutherford, NJ). She remains well 18 months later, having required multi ple palliative LPRs. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of e ndobronchial pheochromocytoma. The pulmonary manifestations of this rare di sease and their management are reviewed.