A Rare Case of Pulmonary Actinomycosis Presented as a Pseudotumor Diagnosed after Pneumonectomy: A Case Report and Literature Review

Abstract

Pulmonary actinomycosis is a rare, slowly progressive infectious disease which is difficult to diagnose.  The disease can mimic lung malignancy, given its nonspecific clinical and radiological presentations, thus posing a diagnostic dilemma to the physician.  Making the diagnosis can be complicated.  Surgical procedures such as CT-guided trans-thoracic needle biopsy, bronchoscopic techniques, or even surgical resections may aid the diagnosis based on histopathological examinations and cultures of the lung tissues.  Hence, with the frequent suspicion of a malignancy, physicians are usually prompted to resort to surgical diagnostic procedures.  The authors report a patient with a rare case of pulmonary actinomycosis which presented as a mass-like lesion in his lungs, which was diagnosed after pneumonectomy.