Haemoptysis with no radiological evidence of tumour - the value of early bronchoscopy.

Thirty-two patients who presented with haemoptysis and in whom a chest radiograph showed no suggestion of a tumour are reviewed. Six had bronchogenic carcinoma diagnosed by bronchoscopy and 1 had an adenoid cystic tumour of the trachea. Flexible fibre-optic bronchoscopy is a safe and easy method of excluding a tumour of the tracheobronchial tree as the cause of haemoptysis and should be performed early in patients who present with this symptom, regardless of the findings on chest radiography.