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- Title
Late BCNU lung: A light and ultrastructural study on the delayed effect of BCNU on the lung parenchyma.
- Authors
Hasleton, P. S.; O'Driscoll, B. R.; Lynch, P.; Webster, A.; Kalra, S. J.; Gattamaneini, H. R.; Woodcock, A. A.; Poulter, L. W.
- Abstract
We describe eight patients who developed interstitial pulmonary fibrosis following BCNU (carmustine) therapy for cerebral tumours. The fibrosis presented 12-17 (mean 14) years after exposure to the drug. A distinctive pattern of pulmonary fibrosis with involvement of the apices and subpleural areas was seen in one patient dying of the disease. Light microscopy showed interstitial elastosis and intra-alveolar fibrosis which was often focal with an associated mild lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate, intra-alveolar oedema, macrophages, and some neutrophils. Ultrastructural studies showed electron lucency of type I pneumocytes, with breaks in the cytoplasmic membranes leaving a bare basement membrane. Degenerative change was also seen in endothelial cell cytoplasm along with lipofuscin deposition. While BCNU pulmonary fibrosis has been described up to 2 years after treatment, this complication so late after therapy, though rare, has important implications for the follow-up of patients receiving this drug.
- Publication
Journal of Pathology, 1991, Vol 164, Issue 1, p31
- ISSN
0022-3417
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1002/path.1711640106