te had he not been put on the life support machine he would have passed away from the felness. >> reporter: the likely diagnosis. a rare lung ailment called bronchiolitis obliterans. on the small airways were so inflamed and scarred they become obstructed. >> reporter: it was nicknamed popcorn lung after the lungs of microwave popcorn factory workers were inhaled by a chemical called diacetyl. it's the first time health efficials have seen this kind of injury from vaping. the canadian teen had been vaping flavored pods and t.h.c. for five months before he became ill. it's not confirmed if diacetyl was in his cartridges. onrlier this month, the c.d.c. identified a different chemical, vitamin e acetate, as a cause of some vaping injury. this new york state lab tests samples taken from the cartridges of patients. patoria derbyshire is the testing center's deputy director. >> we are under the impression the vitamin e acetate is being