SummaryA 70-year-old man with a history of tonsillary carcinoma, treated with surgery and irradiation, presented with a deterioration of his general condition, an interstitial pulmonary disease and a bronchopneumonia resistant to antibiotics. Initially, a pulmonary carcinomatous lymphangitis, secundary to the tonsillary tumor, was considered. A transbronchial biopsy disclosed a lipoid pneumonia due to inhalation of fluid paraffin: only a few days before his discharge did the patient’s family reveal the daily use of paraffin to alleviate mouth dryness. Self administration of fluid paraffin has now become one of the main causes of lipoid pneumonia.The clinical and radiological features of this entity are not characteristic. Our case report empha sizes the importance of a thorough clinical history and the value of transbronchial biopsy in order to diagnose lipoid pneumonia.