Non-diagnosed pulmonary hyalinizing granuloma (PHG) as a cause of sudden unexpected death

Pulmonary hyalinizing granuloma (PHG), a very rare benign tumour of the lungs, was first reported in 1977. We present a PHG of a 32-year-old woman from Yemen who collapsed 1 day after her arrival in Germany. Tuberculosis was suspected and the health authorities nearly closed part of one of the major international airports in Europe. However, this drastic measure was avoided by autopsy and a correct interpretation of the solid-elastic and well-circumscribed lung tumour as not characteristic for tuberculosis. Although the final diagnosis of PHG was only achieved after histology, this case strongly illustrates the necessity of a profound morphological training of forensic physicians.