Orbital Metastases from Breast Cancer with BRCA2 Mutation: A Case Report and Literature Review

• Published in: Case reports in oncology Vol. 11; no. 2; pp. 360 - 364
• Main Authors: Barber, Emily, Lyou, Yung, Mehta, Rita, Lin, Erin, Lane, Karen, Parajuli, Ritesh
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel, Switzerland S. Karger AG 01.05.2018; Karger Publishers
• Subjects: Breast cancer; Breast cancer with BRCA2 mutation; Cancer therapies; Case Report; Case reports; Chemotherapy; Gene expression; Literature reviews; Lymphatic system; Medical prognosis; Metastasis; Mutation; Neck; Nervous system; Orbital metastases; Orbits; Patients; Radiation therapy; United States > US; California; Breast cancer with BRCA2 mutation; Orbital metastases
• ISSN: 1662-6575; 1662-6575
• DOI: 10.1159/000489698

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women in the United States. Of these women, 5–10% have an inherited form of breast cancer with a mutation in a major gene, such as the breast cancer susceptibility genes 1 or 2 (BRCA1 or BRCA2). Triple negative (the most common subtype of BRCA1-associated breast cancers) and Her2-positive breast cancer patients have more frequently been observed to develop central nervous system (CNS) metastases compared to other molecular subtypes of breast cancers. However, it remains an open question if BRCA2-associated breast cancers also have a higher propensity to develop CNS metastases. Here we report a rare case of recurrent BRCA2-associated breast cancer which manifested as orbital metastases. At the time of this publication, this is one of the first cases of BRCA2-associated breast cancer to present with orbital metastases. In this article, we discuss the diagnostic challenges and review the literature regarding this rare presentation.