Rare pleural recurrence of typical pulmonary carcinoid tumor 30 years after lobectomy

A 68-year-old man, who underwent a left lower lobectomy for a typical carcinoid tumor 30 years previously, presented with a 2-year history of left-sided chest pain. A computed tomographic scan, an octreotide scan, and pleural biopsy all showed recurrence of carcinoid tumor in the pleura. He underwent left chest wall resection, and histopathologic examination confirmed the diagnosis of typical carcinoid tumor. A review of the literature indicates that this is only the second reported case of pleural recurrence after previous complete resection of typical pulmonary carcinoid tumor. This case is even more unusual in that the recurrence presented so long after surgery.