Bloody Fluid

My daughter is 29 years old. She originally went to the hospital with shortness of breath. From there she was told she had fluid in one lung and her heart. It got so bad that she had to have pericardial window procedure. The fluid removed was bloody and has had same removed from each lung. She is now in the hospital for a second time with no diagnosis. Even bone marrow procedure was negative. What could be causing this and what would be our next step. This has been going on for 4 months now.

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Welcome to the MedHelp forum!
Well, I wouldn't want to scare you, but the most common cause of bloody pleural fluid is cancer. However, what is less a cause of anxiety is that very few cancers cause bloody pleural fluid. Injury and parapneumonic pleural effusions (due to pneumonia) are the other causes. Another common cause is tuberculosis. Usually an pleural fluid examination—physical/chemical, cytology, culture is enough to reach a diagnosis. Please consult a chest specialist. Further follow up with lung CT may be required. Take care!