Pathology Cheat Sheet
Trace Exposure to Tumour
Occupational lung disease and lung tumours for NEET-PG: silicosis, asbestos bodies, mesothelioma, small cell SIADH, squamous PTHrP, and Pancoast tumour.
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Trace Exposure to Tumour
Occupational lung disease and lung tumours for NEET-PG: silicosis, asbestos bodies, mesothelioma, small cell SIADH, squamous PTHrP, and Pancoast tumour.
Occupational lung disease and the tumours of the lung and pleura including mesothelioma.
High-yield lines
- Pneumoconioses are lung diseases caused by inhaled mineral dusts.
- Coal workers pneumoconiosis produces anthracotic macules and can progress to massive fibrosis.
- Silicosis produces whorled silicotic nodules and increases susceptibility to tuberculosis.
- Asbestosis causes diffuse interstitial fibrosis and characteristic ferruginous asbestos bodies.
- Asbestos exposure causes pleural plaques, bronchogenic carcinoma, and malignant mesothelioma.
- Squamous cell carcinoma and small cell carcinoma of the lung are strongly linked to smoking and arise centrally.
- Adenocarcinoma is the most common lung cancer overall and arises peripherally, including in non-smokers.
- Small cell carcinoma is a neuroendocrine tumour associated with paraneoplastic SIADH and ectopic ACTH.
- Squamous cell carcinoma of the lung is associated with hypercalcaemia from PTHrP secretion.
- A Pancoast tumour at the lung apex can cause Horner syndrome.
- Malignant mesothelioma arises from the pleura decades after asbestos exposure and expresses calretinin.
- Mesothelioma spreads by encasing the lung in a thick rind of tumour.
Mapped competency codes
- PA26.5
- PA26.6
- PA26.7
Continue into the full chapter
This summary maps to PA26-respiratory-system.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are asbestos bodies?
Ferruginous bodies formed when asbestos fibres are coated with iron and protein, seen in asbestosis and indicating significant asbestos exposure.
Which lung cancers are most linked to smoking and arise centrally?
Squamous cell carcinoma and small cell carcinoma, both of which typically arise in the central airways.
What paraneoplastic syndromes are associated with small cell lung carcinoma?
SIADH and ectopic ACTH secretion causing Cushing syndrome, reflecting its neuroendocrine differentiation.
What tumour is caused by asbestos exposure decades earlier?
Malignant mesothelioma of the pleura, which expresses calretinin and encases the lung in a thick tumour rind.
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