Month: Unilateral Peripheral Lung Opacity » Medical Image of the Month: Bleomycin-Induced Pulmonary Fibrosis in a Patient with Lymphoma

Interstitial pulmonary fibrosis is the most feared complication of bleomycin therapy and occurs in up to ten percent of patients that receive the drug. The risk of bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis is related to the age of the patient, the dose of medication given, the patient’s kidney function, and whether the patient smokes cigarettes. Current screening guidelines for bleomycin-induced lung injury are limited, but most clinicians screen high risk and symptomatic patients with pulmonary function testing. This case report is of a patient with lymphoma who received bleomycin as a part of his chemotherapy regimen, and later developed pulmonary fibrosis complicated by bouts of eosinophilic multifocal pneumonia. The case highlights the importance of close monitoring of patients taking bleomycin for signs and symptoms of pulmonary fibrosis and the need for major medical societies to issue concrete screening guidelines.