Tuberc Respir Dis.  2013 Jul;75(1):25-27.

Normalization of Elevated CA 19-9 Level after Treatment in a Patient with the Nodular Bronchiectatic Form of Mycobacterium abscessus Lung Disease

Affiliations
  • 1Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. wjkoh@skku.edu

Abstract

Carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) is a widely-used tumor marker in patients with pancreatic cancer. However, some patients with respiratory disease also exhibit elevated serum CA 19-9 levels. We report a case of normalization of elevated serum CA 19-9 levels after treatment of the nodular bronchiectatic form of Mycobacterium ab scessus lung disease. A 40-year-old man visited our hospital because of chronic cough and sputum. A computed tomography scan revealed severe bronchiectasis in the right upper and right middle lobes. Nontuberculous mycobacteria were repeatedly isolated and identified as M. abscessus. The serum CA 19-9 level was elevated to 142.35 U/mL (normal range, <37 U/mL). Surgical resection was performed because of failure of sputum conversion after antibiotic treatment. The serum CA 19-9 level returned to the normal range after surgery. This case suggested that serum CA 19-9 levels could be elevated in patients with the nodular bronchiectatic form of M. abscessus lung disease.

Keyword

Bronchiectasis; CA 19-9 Antigen; Nontuberculous Mycobacteria

MeSH Terms

Bronchiectasis
CA-19-9 Antigen
Cough
Humans
Lung
Lung Diseases
Mycobacterium
Nontuberculous Mycobacteria
Pancreatic Neoplasms
Reference Values
Sputum
CA-19-9 Antigen

Figure

  • Figure 1 A 40-year-old man with bronchiectasis and nontuberculous mycobacterial lung disease caused by Mycobacterium abscessus. (A) Chest radiography reveals cystic change in the right upper and middle lobes (white arrows). (B) A transverse chest computed tomography (CT) scan (2.5-mm-section thickness) shows total atelectasis and severe bronchiectasis in the right upper lobe (white arrow). (C) A chest CT scan shows bronchiectasis in the right middle lobe (white arrow).

  • Figure 2 Changes in serum carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) level. At the time of diagnosis with Mycobacterium abscessus lung disease, serum CA 19-9 level was elevated to 142.35 U/mL. It returned to the normal range (13.56 U/mL) after surgery (black arrow) and remained up to 12 months later.


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