Primary Breast Angiosarcoma: A Retrospective Study of 36 Cases from a Single Chinese Medical Institute with Clinicopathologic and Radiologic Correlations |
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| Authors: | Lei Wang MD PhD I Weng Lao MD PhD Lin Yu MD PhD Wentao Yang MD PhD Jian Wang MD PhD |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Pathology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, Shanghai, China;2. Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, China |
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| Abstract: | The aim of this study was to present our experience with primary breast angiosarcoma (PBA) by describing a large series of cases with an emphasis on clinicopathologic and radiologic correlations. Thirty‐six cases of PBA diagnosed at our institution between 2006 and 2014 were retrospectively evaluated. All but one case occurred in women with a median age of 35.5 years. The majority of patients presented with a deeply located painless mass, whereas a minority manifested as diffuse enlargement or swelling of the breast. Magnetic resonance imaging showed poorly demarcated lesions with low signal intensity on T1‐weighted images, markedly high intensity on T2‐weighted images, and prolongation of enhancement upon dynamic study. Histologically, 19 cases (52.8%) were low grade, 12 cases (33.3%) were intermediate grade, and 5 cases (13.9%) were high grade. Follow‐up information was available for 27 patients and revealed local recurrence and/or metastasis in 16 patients (59.3%). Five patients (18.5%) died of the disease at a median interval of 20 months. Univariate analysis showed that tumor differentiation had effect on disease‐free survival (DFS) (p = 0.005) but failed to predict overall survival (OS) (p = 0.645). The treatment modality was related to OS (p = 0.042) but not DFS (p = 0.131). The Cox proportional hazards regression model suggested that tumor differentiation was an independent predictor of DFS (p = 0.015). We hypothesize that tumor differentiation may be used as a prognostic factor for this rare malignancy. Clinicopathologic and radiologic correlation may help pathologists to arrive at the correct diagnosis of PBA. |
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| Keywords: | primary breast angiosarcoma prognostic factors radiology |
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