Endometriosis of the lung: A case report and review of literature

Background: Lung endometriosis is an extremely rare gynecological disease. Current literature reports suggest that the majority of patients will present with only generic symptoms, such as hemoptysis, pneumothorax, and hemopneumothorax, which often leads to misdiagnosis. To date, there are 18 case reports of lung endometriosis that describe the clinical manifestation, imaging changes, treatment, and prognosis of the disease. To provide further insights into this rare disease, we present a new case report and a brief review of pulmonary endometriosis.

Case summary: We report here about a 19-year-old woman who was admitted to the hospital for repeated catamenial hemoptysis over a 3-mo period. computed tomography (CT) imaging during menstruation revealed patchy high-density shadows, approximately 0.5 cm³ in size, in the right middle lobe of the lung. The patient's hemoptysis and changes in the CT scans resolved after menstruation. Thoracoscopic right middle lobectomy, right lower lung repair, and closed thoracic drainage were performed. Postoperative histopathology confirmed lung endometriosis. There was no recurrence of symptoms at the 6 mo follow-up.

Conclusion: We propose diagnosing lung endometriosis by thoroughly taking reproductive history, clinical details, imaging, and histopathology followed by treatment with surgical resection.