Metaplastic breast carcinoma development following surgical resection of an inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor in the right breast: A case report

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor of the breast: a case report and review of the literature

BACKGROUND

Few reports of inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) of the breast have been published worldwide. Furthermore, primary anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive IMT of the breast is extremely rare. To date, only six patients with ALK-positive IMT have been reported in the literature.

CASE PRESENTATION

A 52-year-old woman underwent a medical examination, and a left breast mass was detected. She did not feel a mass in her chest. Mammography showed a focal asymmetric density at the lower outer portion of the left breast. Breast ultrasonography showed a 1.2-cm hypoechoic lesion with relatively clear boundaries and poor blood flow. Magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography revealed a solitary heterogeneous mass in the left breast. Pathologic examination revealed a fibrosing lesion with proliferation of fibroblastic cells arranged in a storiform pattern and admixed inflammatory cells. Immunohistochemical examination showed that the tumor cells were positive for ALK. Under the preoperative diagnosis of IMT, we performed partial mastectomy with adequate margins. The postoperative diagnosis was pathologically confirmed as IMT. Immunohistochemical staining also showed overexpression of ALK-1 in the tumor. The patient had a good clinical course for 24 months postoperatively, without recurrence or metastasis.

CONCLUSIONS

IMT of the breast shows nonspecific imaging findings, making preoperative diagnosis difficult. Nevertheless, IMT has the characteristics of low-grade neoplasms with recurrence, invasion, and metastatic potential. Our report emphasizes the importance of determining a treatment plan as soon as possible based on an accurate diagnosis to improve the prognosis of this disease.

Clinicopathological Features of Inflammatory Myofibroblastic Tumor in the Breast

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) is a mesenchymal spindle cell tumour with low malignant potential which is extremely rare in breasts. Because of the lack of typical imaging and clinical characteristics of IMT, it is easy to misdiagnose before operation. We now report a case of a 37-year-old woman presenting with a mass in her left breast. Ultrasound showed a well-circumscribed lesion in the lower outer quadrant. The patient underwent lumpectomy, and histopathology revealed a tumor which was composed of fusiform cells and inflammatory cells. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) showed tumor cells are positive for vimentin, ALK, BCL2, and SMA. The FISH test demonstrated ALK (2p23) chromosomal translocation (ALK positive). The final diagnosis of breast IMT was rendered with nonclassical morphology. Postoperative 30-month follow-up no evidence showed residual tumor or recurrence. As a very rare tumor, breast IMT could be easily misdiagnosed clinically and pathologically. Complete surgical resection of the tumor is preferred, and it has the risk of recurrence and metastasis.

Imaging findings of inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor in breast: A case report

RATIONALE

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors (IMTs), particularly breast IMTs, are rare neoplastic lesions typically associated with a favorable prognosis. Breast IMTs are easily misdiagnosed as other types of malignant lesions, and therefore there is a significant unmet need for a better preoperational differential diagnosis based on imaging manifestations. Here, we report the imaging findings of a breast IMT and compare our findings with previously published features of breast IMTs.

PATIENT CONCERNS

The patient, a 43-year-old female, reported the presence of a palpable lump within her left breast. An ultrasound examination revealed an irregular hypoechoic mass with unclear boundaries. Mammography demonstrated a mass of heterogeneous and striped density with granular calcification. Magnetic resonance image (MRI) inspection displayed an irregular tissue lump with an undistinguishable boundary and a further dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI disclosed an associated efflux change.

DIAGNOSES

Breast inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors.

INTERVENTIONS

Breast needle biopsy and mammary resection were performed. Pathological staining of the bulk resected tumor after preoperative preparation revealed that the tumor-like tissue was enriched for spindle cells arranged in fascicular clusters. Histopathological diagnosis and immunohistochemistry confirmed the mass as being a breast IMT.

OUTCOMES

No metastatic recurrence was found during 6-month or 1-year follow-ups.

LESSONS

Breast IMTs commonly develop in elderly women with atypical imaging features. They are primarily composed of lobular soft tissues infiltrated with an abundant focal blood supply and granular calcification. Development of breast IMTs is closely related to trauma. A preliminary diagnosis of such masses can be made based on combined manifestations of both clinical and imaging features, while a final confirmation still requires pathological staining. Imaging examinations are of value for such tumors to define the lesion edges and their associations with adjacent tissues.

[Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor of the breast: A rare entity]

Also known as inflammatory pseudotumor, inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor is now considered a true low-grade neoplasm. Although the lung is the most common site, it has been described in many other locations, including the breast; the first report of breast involvement was by Pettinato et al. in 1988. We report the case of a 52-year-old perimenopausal woman presenting with a slow-growing mass in her right breast. Mammography revealed a well demarcated lesion which was hypoechoic on ultrasound. A needle biopsy was performed yielding an initial diagnosis of myofibroma and the mass was resected. Histopathology of the 5-cm tumor revealed a fusocellular proliferation with a striking presence of inflammatory cells, morphologically and immunohistochemically concordant with inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor. The patient underwent further surgery to ensure free margins and after a negative extension study (PET-CT) is receiving no further therapy. To date, she has shown no signs of recurrence 8 months postoperatively. Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor of the breast is very infrequent, with less than 30 reported cases. Differential diagnosis with both benign and malignant entities is extensive and it may precede or coexist with carcinoma of the adjacent breast. Although it is considered a low-malignant potential lesion, there are well documented cases of recurrence and even metastasis. Surgical resection with wide margins is the primary treatment and no systemic therapy is indicated; however, clinical follow-up is mandatory as there are no well-established criteria as yet to predict the biological behavior of this tumor.

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors of the breast with simultaneous intracranial, lung, and pancreas involvement: ultrasonographic findings and a review of the literature

We encountered a case of inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) of the breast with simultaneous intracranial, lung, and pancreas involvement. Here, we present the clinical imaging results and report the significance of sonographic findings of breast IMT along with a review of the literature. A 16-year-old girl with a history of subarachnoidal hemorrhage was admitted to our hospital due to tonic-clonic seizure. Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed multiple intracranial, lung, and pancreas mass lesions and a solitary mass lesion in the right breast. Breast ultrasonography showed a circumscribed oval-shaped hypoechoic mass with a central hyperechoic region. Power Doppler sonography revealed an unusual spiral-shaped flow signal. Breast tumorectomy was performed for definitive diagnosis, and pathological analysis indicated IMT. A literature review indicated that ultrasonographic findings of IMT of the breast are nonspecific, as in other systems or organs. It would be difficult to make a diagnosis of IMT of the breast preoperatively due to its rarity and the lack of specificity of clinical imaging findings. In addition, it is better to consider the possibility of IMT of the breast especially in younger patients without an obvious family history of hereditary breast cancer.