Pulmonary lymphangitic carcinomatosis from squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix:A retrospective study with review of literature

Background: Pulmonary lymphangitic carcinomatosis (LC) secondary to cervical squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is an uncommon cause of diffuse infiltrative lung disease. Its reported incidence is quiet low. Materials and Methods: Fifty cases of cervical carcinoma were studied from 2005 to 2014. There was only one case of squamous cell carcinoma cervix that developed pulmonary lymphangitic carcinomatosis subsequently. Clinical manifestations of LC such as dyspnea and non-productive cough can mimic with clinical picture of pneumonia, pneumonitis, pulmonary embolism, congestive heart failure, asthma, and sarcoidosis and thus can be a diagnostic dilemma for treating physician. A review of world literature was also done to examine all the reported cases of cervical carcinoma which presented as pulmonary lymphangitic carcinomatosis. A few cases have been reported so far. Concussion: Pulmonary lymphangitic carcinomatosis is a rare manifestation of metastatic Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC) of the cervix and is associated with a poor prognosis. Increased clinical alertness of such patterns of metastases in cervical cancer along with accurate pathological diagnosis is compulsory to guide proper therapy in these patients.