72-year-old male patient with heavy occupational exposure to asbestos. In addition, the patient had been smoking for 10 years, one package a day, but had stopped for 45 years ago. Initial symptoms included fatigue and a prolonged cough. Referred from primary care to hospital because of pleural fluid found in chest x-ray on the left side. The x-ray shows a clear subpulmonary accumulation of fluid that ascends upwards at the back and along the lobe margin (see lateral view ). There is also an interstitial streaky pattern in the left lung.
Picture source: Medimage / University of Turku. By courtesy of the Finnish Ministry of Education.