This noncaseating granuloma in the lung is the characteristic lesion of sarcoidosis but is not diagnostic of the disease.
Noncaseous granulomas have a wide variety of causes other than sarcoidosis.
There are many and varied causes of granulomatous disease . All of these etiologies, however, produce a similar distinctive histologic pattern called chronic granulomatous inflammation. Granulomas are small, 0.5 - 2mm collections of modified macrophages called epithelioid cells. These collections are usually encircled by lymphocytes and often contain giant cells. Granulomas can be divided into the foreign body type and the hypersensitivity type.