Basal cell adenoma of the lung identified with obstructive pneumonia

The seromucinous glands of the bronchi can give rise to tumors resembling those of the salivary glands. Basal cell adenoma (BCA) has not been reported in salivary gland-type tumors of the lung. Here, we report a case of an 86-year-old Asian man who suffered from pneumonia in the left upper lung field that may be associated with an endobronchial tumor occluding B(1 + 2)a + b. The bronchoscopic biopsy of the tumor revealed that the basaloid cells, which constituted a major component of the tumor and were positive for p40/p63 immunohistochemistry, exhibited a cord-like structure. The Ki-67 (MKI67) staining was less than 1% positive. These findings suggest that the endobronchial tumor was BCA of the lung, which caused obstructive pneumonia in the patient.