The management of ectopic breast cancer--case report

Ectopic breast tissue occurs when the mammary ridge fails to resolve during embryonic development. Ectopic breasts, either supernumerary or aberrant, have an incidence of 6%. Ectopic breast tissue is however hardly mentioned in the literature. Also benign and malignant alterations in these "bre...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inEuropean journal of gynaecological oncology Vol. 27; no. 4; p. 414
Main Authors Tjalma, W A A, Senten, L L C
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Italy 2006
Subjects
Axilla
Breast
Breast Neoplasms - pathology
Breast Neoplasms - surgery
Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast - pathology
Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast - surgery
Choristoma - diagnosis
Choristoma - surgery
Female
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Mastectomy
Middle Aged
Tomography, X-Ray Computed
Online AccessGet more information

Cover

More Information
Summary:Ectopic breast tissue occurs when the mammary ridge fails to resolve during embryonic development. Ectopic breasts, either supernumerary or aberrant, have an incidence of 6%. Ectopic breast tissue is however hardly mentioned in the literature. Also benign and malignant alterations in these "breasts" are under-reported. The lifetime risk of women being diagnosed with breast cancer is 13%. It should be recommended that these "breasts" be included in the screening. Due to the unawareness this is generally not happening. The present article describes a case of ectopic breast cancer and discusses therapeutic management. A subcutaneous mass along the 'milk line' should be examined carefully and any suspicious lesions should be approached according to the guidelines for the management of symptomatic breast disease. Ipsilateral prophylactic mastectomy has no role in the management of a single ectopic breast cancer tissue.
ISSN:0392-2936