Occult Lung Cancer with Acrometastatic Presentation: A Case Report

Abstract

Digit tumors of the hand are uncommon clinical conditions. Differential diagnosis of these lesions can cross over more common conditions, like infection or swelling and always requires histological examination. [1-15] The first clinical examination often occurs in emergency room (ER), since pain, swelling and functional impairment are common symptoms [2,11]. In this report we describe a case of a rare acrometastasis that turned out to be of pulmonary origin. Metastasis at hands and fingers is a rare entity, but even rarer is their presentation as the first sign of a cancer [1,3]. Dominant hand is slightly predilected and the distal phalanx of the thumb is the most frequently involved location [1]. The prognosis is unfavorable, the average survival from the time of diagnosis is about 7 ± 7 months, although extremely rare cases of longer survival are described [4,8,14].