| Pancoast tumor | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Pulmonary sulcus tumor, superior sulcus tumor |
 | |
| Chest X-ray showing a Pancoast tumor (labeled as P, non-small cell lung carcinoma, right lung), from a 47-year-old female smoker. | |
| Specialty | Oncology  |
| Risk factors | Smoking |
A Pancoast tumor is a tumor of the apex of the lung. It is a type of lung cancer defined primarily by its location situated at the top end of either the right or left lung. It typically spreads to nearby tissues such as the ribs and vertebrae. Most Pancoast tumors are non-small-cell lung cancers.
The growing tumor can cause compression of many nearby structures, such as the brachiocephalic vein, subclavian artery, phrenic nerve, recurrent laryngeal nerve, vagus nerve, or, characteristically, compression of a sympathetic ganglion (the stellate ganglion), which result in various presenting symptoms, most notably a range of symptoms known as Horner's syndrome due to compression of nearby sympathetic nerves.
Pancoast tumors are named for Henry Pancoast, an American radiologist, who first described them in 1924 and 1932.
Though many advances in their treatment have been made since their initial categorization, Pancoast tumors remain difficult to treat due to low rates of possible surgical intervention, therefore prognosis is still poor.[1]