Primary peripheral pulmonary adenoid cystic carcinoma: report of a case diagnosed by fine needle aspiration cytology

Abstract

Adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) arising from anatomic sites other than the salivary gland is rare and those occurring in the lung are extremely rare. When arising from the lung, the tumor generally arises from extrapulmonary bronchi, originating from bronchial glands. Primary ACC of the lung located peripherally within lung parenchyma is an even rarer event. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of primary peripheral pulmonary ACC preoperatively diagnosed by fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC). We report a case of primary peripheral ACC of the anterior segment of the right upper lobe in a 46-year-old woman diagnosed by FNAC and a brief review of the literature.