Juvenile papillomatosis of the breast in male infants: two case reports

Papillary Lesions of the Male Breast: A Study of 117 Cases and Brief Review of the Literature Demonstrate a Broad Clinicopathologic Spectrum

Papillary lesions of the male breast (PLMB) are uncommon. To date, PLMB have been reported as individual case reports and in relatively small series. We reviewed cases of PLMB diagnosed at our medical center over a 19-year (2000-2019) period. A total of 117 cases were identified, with an age range of 7 months to 88 years. These cases included 3 of papillary ductal hyperplasia, 5 intraductal papillomas, 1 adenomyoepithelioma, 5 atypical papillomas (ie, papillomas with atypia), 51 papillary ductal carcinoma in situ, 14 encapsulated papillary carcinomas, 38 solid papillary carcinomas, and 8 invasive papillary carcinomas. Malignant papillary neoplasms, including invasive and noninvasive ones, had a mean size of 1.3 cm (range: 0.3 to 4.4 cm), and all were ER and HER2. Fifty-four percent (19/35) of carcinomas were treated with excision alone, 46% (16/35) underwent mastectomy, and 63% (22/35) had axillary lymph node sampling. Only one case had metastatic involvement of axillary lymph nodes. Of the cases with follow-up, no (0/8) invasive carcinoma showed distant metastasis or proved fatal, and no (0/23) noninvasive papillary carcinoma recurred. Two notable cases of PLMB were encountered: one of a 7-month-old boy with NF1 mutation and florid papillary hyperplasia, and another of a 57-year-old man with Klippel-Feil syndrome and bilateral solid papillary carcinoma, invasive and oligometastatic on one side and noninvasive on the other. On the basis of this study of PLMB cases, the largest to date, and review of literature, we conclude that PLMB span a broad clinicopathologic spectrum, and that both invasive and noninvasive papillary carcinomas have relatively good prognosis.

Juvenile papillomatosis of the breast (Swiss cheese disease) has frequent associations with PIK3CA and/or AKT1 mutations

Juvenile papillomatosis (JP), the so-called Swiss cheese disease, is a rare benign breast disease of young adults. An association (up to 28%) with breast cancer within the family of affected patients has been reported. A multinodular cystic breast mass lesion and calcifications characterizes JP in imaging studies. The histological picture is diverse and comprises multiple intraductal papillomas, usual ductal hyperplasia, ductectasias, perifocal sclerosing adenosis, and calcification. Patients with complete excision of JP lesions have an excellent follow-up; breast cancer develops only on a very low subset of patients. Molecular background of JP has not been investigated until now. In this study, we addressed mutational analysis of JP cases and correlated these results with follow-up and family history in context with a comprehensive review of the JP literature. We identified 13 cases fulfilling the criteria of JP. All patients were women with a median age of 38 years (26-50 years). Follow-up information was available for 11 of 13 patients. Sufficient paraffin-embedded tissue and good DNA quality for next-generation sequencing (NGS) was available for 10 patients. Paraffin blocks were microdissected in the area of intraductal proliferative disease; the tissue cores underwent NGS analysis using the Oncomine Comprehensive Panel. In 5 of 10 patients, we found PIK3CA mutations; in 2 of 10 patients, we found AKT1 mutations in known hot spot regions. Further mutations in MET, FGFR3, PTEN, ATM, NF1, and GNAS genes were detected in individual patients. Some of these mutations were present at high allele frequencies suggesting germ line mutations. Two of 3 patients with positive family history had PIK3CA mutation; one patient with positive family history had an AKT1 mutation. One patient who subsequently developed invasive ductal carcinoma in the contralateral breast possibly had a germ line ATM mutation. Our results confirm hot spot mutations in PIK3CA and AKT1 genes in JP associated with positive family history for breast cancer, although these mutations are not specific for JP. The genetic link between JP, positive family history, and subsequent risk of breast cancer needs to be analyzed in further studies.

Juvenile Papillomatosis (Swiss-Cheese Disease) of Breast in an Adult Male With Sequential Diagnoses of Ipsilateral Intraductal, Invasive, and Widely Metastatic Carcinoma: A Case Report and Review of the Disease in Males

Juvenile papillomatosis of the breast (JPB, also known as Swiss cheese disease) is a rare ailment that typically afflicts young females, and presents as a mass-forming lesion. The lesional mass usually comprises multiple cysts and duct stasis, amid a variety of proliferative and nonproliferative epithelial changes. The proliferative changes include papillary hyperplasia, florid hyperplasia, and papillary apocrine hyperplasia. Concurrent carcinoma (either in situ or invasive) is present in approximately 10% of cases at presentation, and subsequent carcinoma (either in situ or invasive) is diagnosed in about 10% of patients. About 20% of patients have a strong family history of breast carcinoma. A total of 10 cases of JPB have been previously reported in males, both children and adults, only one of which, in a 33-year-old, was associated with invasive carcinoma. Here, another case of JPB in a 45-year-old male—one with subsequent sequential diagnoses of ipsilateral intraductal carcinoma, invasive carcinoma, and widely metastatic carcinoma over the course of 15 years—is reported.

High-risk human papilloma virus infection, tumor pathophenotypes, and BRCA1/2 and TP53 status in juvenile breast cancer

Juvenile breast cancer is rare and poorly known. We studied a series of five breast cancer patients diagnosed within 25 years of age that included two adolescents, 12- and 15-years-old, and 3 young women, 21-, 21-, and 25-years-old, respectively. All cases were scanned for germline mutations along the entire BRCA1/2 coding sequences and TP53 exons 4-10, using protein truncation test, denaturing high performance liquid chromatography and direct sequencing. Paraffin-embedded primary tumors (available for 4/5 cases), and a distant metastasis (from the 15-years-old) were characterized for histological and molecular tumor subtype, human papilloma virus (HPV) types 16/18 E6 sequences and tumor-associated mutations in TP53 exons 5-8. A BRCA2 germline mutation (p.Ile2490Thr), previously reported in breast cancer and, as compound heterozygote, in Fanconi anemia, was identified in the 21-year-old patient diagnosed after pregnancy, negative for cancer family history. The tumor was not available for study. Only germline polymorphisms in BRCA1/2 and/or TP53 were detected in the other cases. The tumors of the 15- and 12-years-old were, respectively, classified as glycogen-rich carcinoma with triple negative subtype and as secretory carcinoma with basal subtype. The tumors of the 25-year-old and of the other 21-year-old were, respectively, diagnosed as infiltrating ductal carcinoma with luminal A subtype and as lobular carcinoma with luminal B subtype. No somatic TP53 mutations were found, but tumor-associated HPV 16 E6 sequences were retrieved from the 12- and 25-year-old, while both HPV 16 and HPV 18 E6 sequences were found in the tumor of the 15-year-old and in its associated metastasis. Blood from the 15- and 25-year-old, diagnosed with high-stage disease, resulted positive for HPV 16 E6. All the HPV-positive cases were homozygous for arginine at TP53 codon 72, a genotype associated with HPV-related cancer risk, and the tumors showed p16(INK4A) immunostaining, a marker of HPV-associated cancers. Notably menarche at 11 years was reported for the two adolescents, while the 25-year-old was diagnosed after pregnancy and breast-feeding. Our data suggest that high-risk HPV infection is involved in a subset of histopathologically heterogeneous juvenile breast carcinomas associated with menarche or pregnancy and breast-feeding. Furthermore we implicate BRCA2 in a juvenile breast carcinoma diagnosed at 21 years of age, 4 years after an early full-term pregnancy, in absence of cancer family history.

Juvenile papillomatosis of the breast in a male infant with Noonan syndrome, café au lait spots, and family history of breast carcinoma

Juvenile papillomatosis (JP) of the breast is a rare condition, usually affecting women under 30 years of age. Although this is considered a benign lesion, follow-up is recommended for the patient and family since there is an association with a family history of breast carcinoma and increased risk of development of breast carcinoma. We report an infant with JP, Noonan syndrome (NS), café au lait spots, and family history of breast carcinoma. Seven previously reported cases of JP in males exist, two occurring in infants. The association between JP and NS has not been previously reported.