The Multiple Faces of Lung Adenocarcinoma: Challenges in Diagnosis

Lung cancer dominates the current picture of malignancies worldwide, remaining a tragic first place in mortality statistics. Despite the continuous improvements in lung cancer screening, the refinement of surgical techniques, and innovations in oncological treatments, lung cancer remains the main contributor to fatalities among all forms of neoplastic conditions.^(1,2)

Lung adenocarcinoma is not just one of the most common histological types of lung cancer but also one of the deadliest high heterogeneity. Smoking worldwide due to its late diagnosis and tobacco is one of the main risk factors for any lung cancer, including adenocarcinoma, but there are also other factors that can increase the risk, such as family history of lung cancer and professional exposure to noxious agents such as silica, asbestos, radon, heavy metals, and diesel fumes . ⁽³⁾

Therefore, through this case series report the authors attempt to present their experience with three cases with a broad range of differences such as past medical history, living and work conditions, and other vicious habits such as smoking. This paper strives to establish the potential faces that lung adenocarcinoma can adopt, disguising itself under the umbrella of many other lung parenchymal syndromes, mimicking non-malignant processes, often displaying features very similar to an infection, and misdiagnosed as pneumonia, thereby delaying the diagnosis. Additionally, we provide a brief synthesis of the best resources available in lung adenocarcinoma-specific literature, including the importance of distinguishing early signs and symptoms, medical imaging, differential diagnosis, and early treatment.