Genomics and premalignant breast lesions: clues to the development and progression of lobular breast cancer

Advances in genomic technology have improved our understanding of the genetic events that parallel breast cancer development. Because almost all mammary carcinomas develop in the terminal duct lobular units of the breast, understanding the events involved in mammary gland development make it possible to recognize those events that, when altered, contribute to breast neoplasia. In this review we focus on lobular carcinomas, discussing the pathology, development, and progression of premalignant lobular lesions from a genomic point of view. We highlight studies utilizing genomic approaches and describe how these investigations have furthered our understanding of the complexity of premalignant breast lesions

Primary small cell carcinoma of the breast: a case report

Abstract Background Neuroendocrine breast cancer is a rare entity that was defined in 2003 by the World Health Organization as a separate breast cancer subtype. The diagnosis of neuroendocrine breast cancer requires the presence of neuroendocrine features in at least 50% of malignant cells, the exclusion of non-mammary primary tumors, as well as the presence of an in situ component in breast histology. The treatment and prognosis of neuroendocrine breast cancer are still not well established. Small cell carcinoma of the breast is a subtype of neuroendocrine cancer, resembling small cell carcinoma of the lung. It has a very poor prognosis and warrants treatment with platinum-based chemotherapy. Case presentation We herein report the case of a 47-year-old white woman with a left breast mass that was found to be an early-stage, high-grade small cell carcinoma of the breast. Positron emission tomography-computed tomography imaging excluded any other primary disease. Our patient underwent a left total mastectomy with sentinel lymph node biopsy and received cisplatin-based adjuvant chemotherapy. Our patient remains free of disease to date. Conclusions This case report sheds light on a rarely described disease and provides a comprehensive approach to diagnosis and management. Neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast is a well-defined histologic subtype of breast cancer. Small cell carcinoma of the breast is a rare subtype of neuroendocrine breast cancer. Due to the rarity of this entity, prognosis has still not been well established, and treatment has not been standardized, cisplatin-based treatment has been used in this case similar to small cell carcinoma of the lung