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Advanced malignancy is a prevalent cause of exudative pleural effusion. The management of malignant pleural effusion (MPE) has been the subject of several recent randomized controlled trials and excellent reviews. Less attention has been focused on another controversial and challenging aspect of MPE: establishing the diagnosis. Before selecting the optimal management strategy, the presence of an MPE must first be correctly identified with an emphasis on minimizing invasiveness and discomfort in a patient with late-stage cancer. The aim of the present review is to summarize the current knowledge about MPE diagnostics and to propose an algorithm for the diagnosis of MPE in established or suspected malignancy.

Original publication

DOI

10.1513/annalsats.201902-189cme

Type

Journal article

Journal

Annals of the American Thoracic Society

Publication Date

09/2019

Volume

16

Pages

1099 - 1106

Addresses

Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Elmhurst Hospital Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Elmhurst, New York.

Keywords

Humans, Pleural Effusion, Malignant, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Radiography, Thoracic, Thoracoscopy, Algorithms, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Biomarkers, Tumor, Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography