[Pulmonary malignant fibrous histiocytoma presenting as hemothorax]

A 39-year-old woman, who suffered from a sudden episode of severe left-sided back pain, was admitted to our hospital because of hemothorax. Chest CT scans revealed a mass extending from the left hilum to the posterior thoracic wall. The mass occluded the left pulmonary artery at the left main bronchus. Examination of a frozen section of a specimen obtained during a thoracotomy showed a sarcomatous tumor. A left pneumonectomy was then performed. Microscopic examination of a specimen revealed that the tumor was composed of spindle cells with cellular atypia and mitosis forming fascicles and storiform arrays. Malignant fibrous histiocytoma (storiform-pleomorphic pattern) was diagnosed. Chemotherapy was carried out six times during the year after surgery. No recurrence of the tumor has been seen during 20 months of follow-up.