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Pulmonary tuberculosis can closely mimic thoracic metastases on imaging in patients with a history of malignancy, necessitating tissue diagnosis to prevent inappropriate cancer staging and treatment. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.INCREMENTAL. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

August 26, 2026CureusOpen Access

Pulmonary Tuberculosis Mimicking Metastatic Disease in a Patient With Two Previous Primary Malignancies: A Thoracoscopic Diagnostic Challenge

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To describe a diagnostic challenge involving pulmonary tuberculosis mimicking metastatic disease in a patient with a history of two distinct primary cancers.
Evaluated a 64-year-old female with treated renal cell carcinoma and breast cancer presenting with a new pulmonary nodule and mediastinal lymphadenopathy on routine imaging.
Performed video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) with wedge resection of the pulmonary nodule and mediastinal lymph node biopsy for histopathological examination.
Histopathology demonstrated necrotizing granulomatous inflammation with epithelioid histiocytes and multinucleated giant cells, devoid of malignant cells.
Results confirmed an infectious granulomatous disease consistent with pulmonary tuberculosis, avoiding inappropriate oncological treatment and enabling targeted microbiological referral.

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Implication

Case report reveals pulmonary tuberculosis mimicking metastatic cancer in a patient with multiple malignancies, highlighting the critical role of surgical biopsy for accurate diagnosis.

Cite This Study

Bivolarski et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a8ebb54451774b83f3b4cf3 https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.115084

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Implication

Case report reveals pulmonary tuberculosis mimicking metastatic cancer in a patient with multiple malignancies, highlighting the critical role of surgical biopsy for accurate diagnosis.

Pulmonary Tuberculosis Mimicking Metastatic Disease in a Patient With Two Previous Primary Malignancies: A Thoracoscopic Diagnostic Challenge

Key Points

Discussion

Implication

Cite This Study

Pulmonary Tuberculosis Mimicking Metastatic Disease in a Patient With Two Previous Primary Malignancies: A Thoracoscopic Diagnostic Challenge

Key Points

Discussion

Implication

Cite This Study

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