All issues > Volume 43(4); 2000

Case Report

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 2000;43(4):573-577. Published online April 15, 2000.

A Case of Severe Hypertensive Pulmonary Edema Associated with Neuroblastoma during Chemotherapy

Hee Suk HS Cho¹, Hwang Min HM Kim¹, Seok Won SW Park¹, Jong Soo JS Kim¹, Yoon Mi YM Kim², Kwang Kil KK Lee²

¹Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Yonsei University Wonju, Wonju, Korea
²Department of Pediatrics and Pathology, College of Medicine, Yonsei University Wonju, Wonju, Korea

Abstract

The authors report a 7-year-old boy with neuroblastoma complicated by severe hypertension and pulmonary edema. Abdominal computed tomographic scan revealed a huge mass surrounding the aorta. After administration of cancer treatment, there was a marked increase in serum catecholamines level and hypertension, which resulted in pulmonary edema and heart failure. Alpha adrenergic blocking agents(prazocin, terazocin) were administrated, successfully controlling the hypertension. The tumor differentiated to ganglioneuroblastoma after chemotherapy. The catecholamine production of the residual neuroblastoma must have increased because the treatment induced differentiation. It is important to watch for the development of hypertension during the treatment of neuroblastoma.

Keywords :Neuroblastoma, Hypertension, Pulmonary edema, Catecholamine, Chemotherapy, Differentiation