Pulmonary sclerosing haemangioma mimicking lung cancer on PET scan

Abstract

Sclerosing haemangioma is an uncommon lung tumour that typically presents as a solitary, peripheral pulmonary nodule in the lower lobe. Little is known of the appearance of these tumours on FDG‐PET scan. We report two patients with sclerosing haemangioma with increased uptake on FDG‐PET scan, which complicated the preoperative work‐up. Although the CT scan features of these two masses were compatible with the differential diagnosis of sclerosing haemangioma, the central location and increased uptake on FDG‐PET scan raised the suspicion of malignancy. We conclude that centrally located large sclerosing haemangiomas may be avid on FDG‐PET scan, and that familiarity with this false positive finding helps in the diagnosis of a solitary pulmonary nodule.