Thoracoscopic Resection of Bronchopulmonary Carcinoid Related to Cushing's Syndrome

Bronchopulmonary carcinoids are rare neuroendocrine neoplasms and those occurring peripherally produce corticotropin, occasionally resulting in Cushing's syndrome (CS). We report two cases of bronchial carcinoids in a 68-year-old woman with poor glycemic control and hypokalemia and in a 33-year-old woman with irritable behavior and hypokalemia. The diagnosis was based on the cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone levels, chest computed tomography (CT) results, and histopathology of the wedge-resected nodule. Diagnosis of CS caused by ectopic adrenocorticotropic hormone secretion by using various endocrine and imaging tests is challenging; moreover, positron emission tomography (PET) failed to locate the tumor. Thus, thoracoscopic resection is an excellent diagnostic and therapeutic procedure for CS.