BACKGROUND Pleural carcinosis is caused by tumors of the chest (e.g., lung and breast cancer) or elsewhere in the body (e.g., ovarian carcinoma) that metastasize to the visceral and/or parietal pleura. Recurrent malignant pleural effusion due to pleural carcinosis is one of the most common findings in oncology. It affects about 56 000 patients per year in Germany alone. METHODS This review is...

Antitumor activity of macrophages from the peripheral blood, pleural cavity, and alveoli of 35 patients with primary lung cancer was examined. Cytostatic activities of peripheral blood monocytes and alveolar macrophages from either tumor-bearing or non-tumor-bearing segments declined in association with metastasis to regional lymph nodes, an increase in tumor size, and the development of pleura...

Malignancy and tuberculosis are common causes of lymphocytic exudative pleural effusion. However, it is occasionally difficult to differentiate malignant pleural effusion from tuberculous pleural effusion. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a critical cytokine in the pathogenesis of malignant pleural effusion. Endocan is a dermatan sulfate proteoglycan that is secreted by endothelial ...

Malignant pleural effusions are common complications in patients with primary or metastatic cancer to the lungs. In this article, we describe a unique case of a patient with history of diffuse pulmonary metastases from gallbladder adenocarcinoma who acutely developed a bilious pleural effusion following endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography. We believe the bilious pleural effusion (cho...

Pleural fluid cytology is usually the initial diagnostic tool in pleural fluid analysis. However, the conventional cytological evaluation of pleural effusion in detecting malignancy has a sensitivity wide range – from 22 to 81%. Measurement of carcinoembryogenic antigen (CEA) level in pleural fluid may be valuable in the diagnosis of malignant pleural effusion. The study was performed on 70 dif...

INTRODUCTION Tuberculous pleural effusions are not always easy to diagnose but the presence of a lymphocyte-rich exudate associated with an increased adenosine deaminase level and a positive skin test result are highly sensitive diagnostic signs. CASE PRESENTATION We report a case of pleural tuberculosis in a 31-year-old white male patient from Caracas, Venezuela who was negative for human im...

A high percentage of pleural effusions remain unexplained despite an intensive diagnostic workup. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infections occur worldwide and affect the majority of the population. The present study investigated the prevalence and clinical relevance of EBV in pleural effusions. A prospective study was performed in which 60 consecutive patients with pleural effusion were enrolled. Re...

PURPOSE Pleural effusion, an accumulation of fluid in the pleural space, usually occurs in patients when the rate of fluid formation exceeds the rate of fluid removal. The differential diagnosis of tuberculous pleurisy and malignant pleural effusion is a difficult task in high tuberculous prevalence areas. The aim of the present study was to identify novel biomarkers for the diagnosis of pleura...

INTRODUCTION We investigated the expression of microRNAs and mRNAs in pleural tissues from patients with either malignant pleural mesothelioma or benign asbestos-related pleural effusion. METHODS Fresh frozen tissues from a total of 18 malignant pleural mesothelioma and 6 benign asbestos-related pleural effusion patients were studied. Expression profiling of mRNA and microRNA was performed us...

Tuberculosis is characterized by the presence of activated mononuclear cells both in the peripheral circulation and in pleural fluid. Expression and up-regulation of adhesion molecules is the basis of cell-cell adhesion in granuloma formation and in leukocyte migration to the inflammatory site. Soluble isoforms of adhesion molecules have been described, and their expression at high levels indic...