Anatomical variant of the azygos vein course in a cancer patient and review of the literature

Abstract

The azygos vein is responsible for drainage through a staff of venous blood from the chest wall for the most part. Sometimes its course causes the independence of part of the lung parenchyma, which is known as the accessory lobe of the azygos. The present article presents the casual radiological finding of this anatomical variant in a 70-year-old patient undergoing a computed tomography scan for colon cancer. The azygos accessory lobe is a mostly asymptomatic anatomical variation, but it can be a problem in some thoracic surgeries.