Bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia after tangential beam irradiation to the breast: discrimination from radiation pneumonitis.

We report a case of bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia (BOOP) secondary to tangential beam irradiation to the breast, which occurred seven months after the completion of radiotherapy. Although radiation pneumonitis is an alternative consideration, BOOP could be differentiated from it by its relatively late onset and extensive distribution, which did not respect the radiation field. This disease should always be kept in mind in patients with a history of tangential beam irradiation to the breast.