Lung cancer in patients with bullous disease

There have been sporadic reports in the literature of an association between bullous disease of the lung and lung cancer; however, we believe that this clinical association is not well recognized. We present six cases in which bullous disease of the lung and lung cancer coexisted, and review the available literature on the topic. Five of the patients were males, the mean age of presentation was 42 yr (range: 32 to 62 yr), and all of the patients were smokers. Histologically the tumors in all six patients were non-small-cell carcinomas. The significantly younger age of these patients with lung cancer and bullous disease as compared with those reported in the literature with lung cancer but without bullous disease suggests that the association between these two processes is more than just coincidental. The utility of plain radiography and computerized tomography (CT) of the chest in screening patients with bullous disease for lung cancer is discussed.