Medulloblastoma metastatic to breast, diagnosed by fine-needle aspiration biopsy

Sonographic appearance of a metastasis to the breast from a cerebellar medulloblastoma

We present the case of a 29-year-old woman with a medulloblastoma of the cerebellum who developed a breast mass during the course of her disease. Core biopsy of the breast lesion revealed a metastatic medulloblastoma. Development of metastasis to the breast from medulloblastoma is very rare and the prognosis for such patients is poor. It is important to distinguish primary breast cancer from metastasis to the breast, because the therapeutic options as well as the prognosis are very different.

Fine needle aspiration biopsy diagnosis of metastatic neoplasms of the breast. A three-case report

Metastases to the breast are unusual lesions that make up approximately 2% of all malignant mammary neoplasms and may mimic both benign and malignant primary neoplasms from a clinical point of view, as well as in imaging studies. Arriving at a correct diagnosis is therefore essential in order to establish appropriate management.

We present three cases of metastatic neoplasms diagnosed through fine needle aspiration biopsy and immunocytochemistry. The cytological diagnoses were: medulloblastoma in an 18-year-old woman, melanoma in a 26-year-old man, and an exceptional case of ovarian sarcoma originating from a granulosa cell tumor with metastases to both breasts. A metastatic disease should be considered in the differential diagnosis of a palpable mass in the breast, especially if there is a history of an extramammary malignant neoplasm. Fine needle aspiration biopsy is the method of choice for the management of these cases.

Whenever possible the exam of the material obtained should be compared to the previous biopsy, which is usually enough to arrive at a correct diagnosis, thus preventing unnecessary surgical procedures.

Unsuspected Metastatic Male Breast Nodule From Synovial Sarcoma Detected by FDG PET

The literature of serendipitous findings on whole-body FDG PET continues to grow. Whole-body FDG PET imaging of a 24-year-old man with treated synovial sarcoma of the right upper extremity showed an abnormal focus of activity over the right chest in addition to abnormal uptake in the lungs. On reexamination, he was found to have a hitherto unknown 2.5-cm mobile nodule in the right breast. Histopathology confirmed it to be metastasis from the synovial sarcoma. Extramammary malignancies metastasizing to the breast constitute approximately 2% of all breast tumors.

Fine-needle aspiration diagnosis of medulloblastoma metastatic to the pelvis

A 25-yr-old male presented with a cerebellar mass, underwent a suboccipital craniotomy, and was diagnosed with medulloblastoma. Six months later he developed a large mass in the right iliac crest. Fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) confirmed the diagnosis of metastatic medulloblastoma. The diagnosis of metastatic medulloblastoma is usually suspected clinically or radiographically, and is uncommonly confirmed by cytologic evaluation. Here we report on a rare case of FNAB used to diagnose metastatic medulloblastoma.