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Case Reports
. 2014 Mar-Apr;47(2):125-7.
doi: 10.1590/S0100-39842014000200017.

Primary neuroendocrine breast carcinoma: a case report and literature review

Maria Helena Valentim  1 , Vanessa Monteiro  2 , José Carlos Marques  3
Affiliations
Case Reports

Primary neuroendocrine breast carcinoma: a case report and literature review

Maria Helena Valentim et al. Radiol Bras. 2014 Mar-Apr.

Abstract
in English, Portuguese

The authors present a case of a neuroendocrine carcinoma in an asymptomatic 75-year-old woman, detected in routine breast screening. The lesion was visible at mammography as a well circumscribed, medium density nodule, with no associated microcalcifications, and at ultrasonography as a hypoechoic nodule, with irregular shape and ill-defined margins. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed findings consistent with malignancy.

Os autores apresentam um caso de carcinoma neuroendócrino numa mulher de 75 anos assintomática detectado em estudo imaginológico mamário de rotina. A lesão apresentava-se na mamografia como nódulo bem circunscrito de média densidade, sem microcalcificações associadas e ecograficamente como nódulo hipoecogônico de morfologia irregular e limites mal definidos. Na ressonância magnética mamária as características da lesão eram concordantes com malignidade.

Keywords: Breast; Carcinoma; Imaging; Neuroendocrine.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Mammography, craniocaudal and oblique views. An ovoid well defined mass is identified in the upper-inner quadrant of the left breast, with medium density and no associated microcalcifications.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Ultrasonography demonstrated a solid hypoechogenic mass with ill defined contours, without any alteration of posterior echoes, measuring 19 mm in its largest diameter.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Neuroendocrine tumor with a carcinoid-like pattern. Tumor cells with a rosette pattern of distribution and some cells showing granular eosinophilic cytoplasm (a). Immunohistochemical staining positive for synaptophysin (b).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Breast MRI confirming the presence of the lesion in the upper-inner quadrant of the left breast. a: Axial MRI T2-weighted image demonstrating a hypointense lesion with irregular morphology. b: Axial MRI T1-weighted images with fat suppression after gadolinium injection, demonstrating intense, ring-enhancement and identifying another small-sized nodule that is more anteriorly located. c: Kinetic curve of the larger lesion, showing early intense enhancement followed by wash-out, consistent with malignancy.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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    1. Menéndez P, García E, Rabadán L, et al. Primary neuroendocrine breast carcinoma. Clin Breast Cancer. 2012;12:300–303. - PubMed
    1. Kinoshita S, Hirano A, Komine K, et al. Primary small-cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast: report of a case. Surg Today. 2008;38:734–738. - PubMed
    1. Fujimoto Y, Yagyu R, Murase K, et al. A case of solid neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast in a 40-year-old woman. Breast Cancer. 2007;14:250–253. - PubMed
    1. Günhan-Bilgen I, Zekioglu O, Ustün EE, et al. Neuroendocrine differentiated breast carcinoma: imaging features correlated with clinical and histopathological findings. Eur Radiol. 2003;13:788–793. - PubMed

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