Final answer:
If a 50-year-old man with a 'coin lesion' abnormality on a chest x-ray seeks a referral before undergoing a planned repair of inguinal hernia, the appropriate course of action would be to further evaluate the chest abnormality to determine its nature.
Step-by-step explanation:
If a 50-year-old man with a 'coin lesion' abnormality on a chest x-ray seeks a referral before undergoing a planned repair of inguinal hernia, and the lesion is malignant or indeterminate on needle biopsy, the appropriate course of action would be to further evaluate the chest abnormality to determine its nature. This may involve additional imaging tests such as a CT scan or PET scan, or a surgical lung biopsy to obtain a larger tissue sample for analysis. The purpose of this evaluation is to rule out the presence of a lung cancer or other serious lung condition before proceeding with the hernia repair surgery.