Current Oncology (Aug 2021)

Complex Differential Diagnosis between Primary Breast Cancer and Breast Metastasis from EGFR-Mutated Lung Adenocarcinoma: Case Report and Literature Review

  • Carmine Valenza,
  • Francesca Maria Porta,
  • Alessandra Rappa,
  • Elena Guerini-Rocco,
  • Giuseppe Viale,
  • Massimo Barberis,
  • Filippo de Marinis,
  • Giuseppe Curigliano,
  • Chiara Catania

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/curroncol28050292
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 28, no. 5
pp. 3384 – 3392

Abstract

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We present a case of a woman with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutated lung adenocarcinoma who received gefitinib for 2 years and obtained a partial response. The patient then developed liver metastasis and a breast lesion, displaying high estrogen receptor (ER) expression and harboring the same EGFR mutation. From the radiological studies, it was not possible to make a differential diagnosis between primary breast cancer and breast metastasis from lung cancer. After the removal of the breast nodule, thanks to the clinical history, radiology, and above all, molecular and immunohistochemical investigations, a diagnosis of breast metastasis from lung adenocarcinoma was made. This case emphasizes the importance of a comprehensive clinical, pathological, and molecular analysis in the differential diagnosis between primary breast cancer and metastases from extramammary tumor to guide adequate treatment decision making.

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