[A case of pulmonary carcinosarcoma presenting cerebellar metastasis]

A 77-year-old man was admitted to our hospital, because of cough for one month. Chest X-ray examination revealed a tumor in the right upper lobe. A right pneumonectomy was done. Histopathologically, the tumor was diagnosed as true pulmonary carcinosarcoma, because it consisted partly of squamous cell carcinoma surrounded by spindle cell stroma and partly of chondrosarcoma. Lymph nodes were free of tumor. The patient was very well until nine months after surgery, when speech and gait disturbance appeared. And, metastatic involvement of the right cerebellar hemisphere was confirmed on the brain CT-scan. He died of acute bronchopneumonia. The component of the metastatic brain tumor was verified pathologically only carcinomatous. Pulmonary carcinosarcoma is a rare malignant tumor, and can be divided into two types: true carcinosarcoma and so-called carcinosarcoma. Only eight cases of pulmonary carcinosarcoma presenting brain metastasis including ours are known.