Intralobar Pulmonary Sequestration and Increased Serum CA 19-9

Intralobar pulmonary sequestration is an uncommon congenital lung anomaly which consists of a mass of normal lung tissue not connected to the normal tracheobronchial tree and supplied by an anomalous systemic artery. Carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) is widely accepted as a tumour marker for biliary, pancreatic and gastrointestinal cancer. However, CA 19-9 may also be increased in patients with benign disease. We describe the case of a 56-year-old woman with intralobar pulmonary sequestration who underwent unnecessary and extensive diagnostic abdominal examinations because of an increase in CA 19-9 serum levels.