False pregnancy: an unusual paraneoplastic syndrome associated with bronchogenic neoplasm

Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) is typically associated with pregnancy or germ cell tumors. Although it may be detected within the tissue of a variety of malignant tumors by immunohistochemical methods, including primary lung cancers, serum levels are rarely elevated in non-germ cell malignancies. We describe a young lady who presented with chest discomfort and dyspnea. Clinically, she was thought to have deep venous thrombosis. She presumed that she was pregnant since her last menses was 3 months before admission. She also had breast tenderness similar to that which she had experienced during a previous pregnancy. A serum value for B-HCG suggested that she was 4 to 6 weeks pregnant. Further investigation confirmed that this patient was not pregnant, but had developed a gonadotropin secreting adenocarcinoma of the lung.