Can lung cancer metastasize to the nose?

Non-small cell lung cancer accounts for 85% of lung cancers.

Malignant tumors of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses are mostly primary tumors, and their metastases are rare, mainly derived from kidney cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, thyroid cancer, etc.

Next, we will share a clinical case of lung adenocarcinoma metastasis to the sinuses in the literature

Case Studies

The patient is a 45-year-old woman who was found to have a right upper lung mass during physical examination (Figure 1).

Figure 1.

Nosebleeds and left-sided headache occurred 4 months after tumor resection

Examination at presentation revealed a normal external nose shape

Figure 2.

The patient was finally diagnosed with lung cancer with nasal metastases

Fig.

The patient had no postoperative complications and was discharged without further chemoradiotherapy

Figure 4 CT scan images

The analysis of the reasons for metastasis in this rare site is as follows: Most of the sinus malignancies are primary tumors, and only in rare cases are they caused by metastases elsewhere

Therefore, doctors should be aware that patients with a history of primary lung cancer may have sinus metastases when they have epistaxis, and identifying whether these patients have sinus metastases can help early diagnosis and timely treatment

references

[1] Luo Xiangyu, Xing Shijiang, Zeng Weibin, Deng Wanfang, Xu Jianping, Chen Yuanping, Li Xin.

[2] Xu Han, Cao Yajie, Zhou Ningning, Qiao Huan, Zhong Chunsheng, Shan Lei.

[3] Prakash Aaditya, Kumar Upadhyay Amitabh.
A Rare Case of Metastases to Paranasal Sinus From Colonic Adenocarcinoma.
[J].
Cureus, 2021, 13(4).

[4] Kryaneva EV, Rubtsova NA, Levshakova AV, Khalimon AI, Leontyev AV, Kalpinskiy AS, Nyushko KM, Nikiforovich PA, Polyakov AP, Zikiryakhodzhaev AD, Kaprin AD.
Rare localization of renal cell carcinoma metastases in the paranasal sinuses and breast: a case report[J].
Medical Visualization, 2019, 22(6).

[5] Pierre-Louis Bastier, Dorothée Dunion, Guillaume de Bonnecaze, Elie Serrano, Ludovic de Gabory.
Renal Cell Carcinoma Metastatic to the Sinonasal Cavity: A Review and Report of 8 Cases[J].
ENT Journal, 2018, 97(9 ).

[6] Serdar Altınay, Ümit Taşkın, Salih Aydın, Mehmet Faruk Oktay.
Thyroid Follicular Carcinoma Metastasized to the Paranasal Sinus, Lung and Bone, Showing Extensive Clear Cell Morphology[J].
Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology and Oral Radiology, 2015, 119(3).