Reflectance Confocal Microscopy Can Help in Detecting Clinically Silent Mammary Paget’s Disease

Abstract

Early detection and comprehensive diagnostic approaches for breast cancer are essential for improving prognosis. When it comes to changes in the skin of the breast or the nipple–areola complex (NAC), particularly if they are unilateral, it is essential to be vigilant, as these changes could be an early sign of underlying malignancy or other pathologies. Primary breast malignancies, such as mammary Paget’s disease (MPD), can manifest as erythema, scaling, or ulceration of the NAC, while secondary cutaneous metastases from other breast carcinomas may present as nodules, erythematous plaques, or inflammatory reactions. Non-malignant inflammatory conditions, including eczema or mastitis, can also mimic these changes; histologic evaluation is the gold-standard diagnostic tool. The usefulness of conventional diagnostic techniques breast lesions has been confirmed, but in recent years, reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) have emerged as additional tools to diagnose cases characterized by cutaneous changes; they may, therefore, result in new perspectives on the non-invasive diagnosis of MPD. RCM is a non-invasive diagnostic technique that allows high-resolution images of the skin at microscopic level in real time, offering a promising approach to the non-invasive diagnosis of MPD, particularly when a lesion is not clinically evident and may mimic other benign or inflammatory conditions. We describe an atypical clinical presentation of mammary Paget’s disease diagnosed early by reflectance confocal microscopy evaluation and confirmed histologically.

Keywords

• dermoscopy
• reflectance confocal microscopy
• Paget’s disease
• skin lesion