A case of malignant pericardial effusion due to breast cancer successfully controlled by intrapericardial chemotherapy using pirarubicin]

We report a case of malignant pericardial effusion due to breast cancer that was successfully controlled by intrapericardial chemotherapy using pirarubicin. A 53-year-old woman underwent breast conserving therapy for left breast cancer in 1996. She was given CAF therapy and UFT as adjuvant therapy. Three years and 10 months after operation, she had malignant pericardial and pleural effusion. Pericardiocentesis and pleurocentesis were performed immediately. Pericardial effusion relapsed after some time and she was treated with intrapericardial chemotherapy using pirarubicin. After this treatment she has not suffered from pericardial effusion for 1 year and 4 months to date. This case suggests that intrapericardial chemotherapy is effective for malignant pericardial effusion.     

Breast cancer in the very young patient: a multidisciplinary case presentation

A case is presented that exemplifies many issues and controversies in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer in the very young. This woman was 22 years of age at diagnosis; she initially underwent breast-conservation therapy and adjuvant chemotherapy, retained fertility, had a subsequent uncomplicated pregnancy and delivery, and 7 years later developed a local recurrence in the breast. The discussion addresses risk factors, diagnosis, and treatment of breast cancer in the young; the impact of treatment on fertility; implications regarding pregnancy, and the management of local recurrence after breast conservation.     

A case of bone marrow carcinomatosis from breast cancer treated with weekly Paclitaxel

We report a case of bone marrow carcinomatosis originating from breast cancer that was treated with weekly paclitaxel (PTX). A 42-year-old female patient underwent mastectomy with axillary lymph node dissection for breast cancer in 2001. Multiple bone metastases were diagnosed in 2008, but she remained stable with chemotherapy and hormonal therapy for about two years. In 2010, thrombocytopenia occurred, and she was diagnosed with bone marrow carcinomatosis after bone marrow biopsy. She was treated with weekly PTX(80 mg/m2), and recovered successfully after treatment. About one year has elapsed since initiation of therapy, and there has been no recurrence. Bone marrow carcinomatosis originating from breast cancer is very rare, and is regarded as a disease with a poor prognosis. However, weekly PTX could be a valid treatment for prolonging survival of bone marrow carcinomatosis originating from breast cancer.     

Safety of epirubicin adjuvant chemotherapy in a breast cancer patient with chronic renal failure undergoing hemodialytic treatment

Anthracycline-based adjuvant chemotherapy is very effective in early breast cancer, but there are limited data on the use of epirubicin in patients with chronic renal failure undergoing hemodialytic treatment. We report the case of a patient with early breast cancer and chronic renal failure who was treated with adjuvant weekly epirubicin. Treatment was well tolerated. The patient is still alive and relapse free 58 months after surgery. If the patient will be disease free after 5 years, she will be reconsidered for renal transplantation. In conclusion, weekly epirubicin appears to be a safe adjuvant chemotherapy option for early breast cancer patients with chronic renal failure undergoing hemodialytic treatment.     

Prognostically favorable abdominal breast cancer metastases with stomach involvement

BACKGROUND: Abdominal metastases with stomach involvement are rare in breast cancer. The median disease free interval from the time of breast cancer diagnosis to gastric metastasis is usually very long. Treatment is generally palliative, and expected survival time is less than 1 year. CASE REPORT: A 59-year-old woman with breast cancer developed diffuse abdominal metastases involving stomach, abdominal lymph nodes, and omentum 9 years after she underwent mastectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy. The histopathologic diagnosis found by stomach specimen examination was invasive lobular carcinoma, and the cells expressed high levels of estrogen and progesterone receptors. The abdominal metastases were treated with surgery, postoperative chemotherapy, and further hormonal therapy. This was successful, and the patient has been in remission for more than 3 years. CONCLUSION: Once the definitive diagnosis of breast cancer metastases to the abdomen including the stomach is established, treatment that targets systemic breast cancer must be initiated. Our patient's extended survival time suggests that surgical treatment could be considered for selected patients.     

A patient with of metastatic breast cancer with a well-controlled quality of life using S-1 therapy as first-line chemotherapy

We experienced a case of endocrine therapy-resistant recurrent breast cancer with liver and bone metastases, treated with S-1 as first-line chemotherapy and maintaining a good quality of life. The patient was a 31-year-old premenopausal woman. She was diagnosed with cancer of the left breast(T1(18mm), N0, M(-))and underwent breast-conserving surgery, sentinel lymph node biopsy, and radiation therapy in August 2002. As there was hormone sensitivity, she was treated with LHRH analog for 3 years and tamoxifen for 5 years as adjuvant therapy. After her first childbirth, she had a recurrence of liver and bone metastases. After treatment with endocrine therapy failed, an oral administration of S-1 was initiated as first-line chemotherapy considering her QOL. She received 8 months of S-1 therapy with no severe adverse reactions and maintained a high quality of life. Treatment with S-1 is thought to be useful for first-line chemotherapy if the treatment demonstrates a therapeutic equivalence with taxane on patients' overall survival.     

Two Cases of Post-Radiation Sarcoma after Breast Cancer Treatment

We describe two cases of post-radiation sarcoma after breast cancer treatment. The first patient was a 61-year-old woman who underwent partial mastectomy of the right breast and adjuvant whole breast irradiation 7 years previously. Subsequently, a rapidly growing mass from the anterior arc of the right fifth rib was incidentally detected on an abdomino-pelvic computed tomography scan. The second patient was a 70-year-old woman who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy and a partial mastectomy of the left breast 9 years ago. Adjuvant irradiation was delivered to the whole breast and supraclavicular region. Subsequently, an approximate 8 cm mass developed in the left axillary area. Both patients received wide excision of the tumor with negative resection margins. The pathological diagnoses were osteosarcoma and undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma, respectively. Although post-radiation sarcomas are rare complications with a poor prognosis, enhanced awareness and early detection by clinicians are essential to improve outcomes via curative surgical resection.     

Long-term risk of sarcoma following radiation treatment for breast cancer.

Between 1954 and 1983, 7620 patients were treated for breast carcinoma at Institut Gustave Roussy (France). Of these patients, 6919 were followed for at least 1 year. Out of these, 11 presented with sarcomas thought to be induced by irradiation, 2 of which were Steward-Treves Syndrome, and 9 of which were sarcomas within the irradiated fields. All histological slides were reviewed and a comparison with those of breast cancer was done. The sites of these sarcomas were: parietal wall, 1 case; second costal cartilage, 1 case; infraclavicular region, 1 case; supraclavicular region, 2 cases; internal third of the clavicle, 2 cases; axillary region 2 cases; and the internal side of the upper arm (Stewart-Treves syndrome), 2 cases. The median age of these 11 patients at the diagnosis of sarcomas was 65.8 (49-83). The mean latent period was 9.5 years (4-24). Three patients underwent radical mastectomy and nine modified radical mastectomy. Only one patient received chemotherapy. The radiation doses received at the site of the sarcoma were 45 Gy/18 fr. for 10 cases and 90-100 Gy for 1 case (due to overlapping between two fields). The histology was as follows: malignant fibrous histiocytoma, 5 cases; fibrosarcoma, 3 cases; lymphangiosarcoma, 2 cases; and osteochondrosarcoma, 1 case. The median survival following diagnosis of sarcoma was 2.4 years (4 months-9 years). Two patients are still alive: one with recurrence of her breast cancer, the other in complete remission, with 7 and 3 years follow-up, respectively. All other patients died from their sarcomas. The cumulative incidence of sarcoma following irradiation of breast cancer was 0.2% (0.09-0.47) at 10 years. The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) of sarcoma (observed n# of cases (Obs)/expected n# of cases (Exp) computed from the Danish Cancer Registry for the same period) was 1.81 (CI 0.91-3.23). This is significantly higher than one, with a p = 0.03 (One Tailed Exact Test). The mean annual excess (Obs-Exp)/100.000 person-years at risk during the same period/(100,000) was 9.92. This study suggests that patients treated by radiation for breast cancer have a risk of subsequent sarcomas that is higher than the general population. However, the benefit from adjuvant radiation therapy in the treatment of breast cancer exceeds the risk of second cancer; therefore, the potential of radiation-induced sarcomas should not be a factor in the selection of treatment for patients with breast cancer.     

Breast cancer scalp metastasis as first metastatic site after scalp cooling: two cases of occurrence after 7- and 9-year follow-up

Chemotherapy-induced alopecia is a commonly feared chemotherapy side effect and can be prevented using scalp cooling. Scalp metastasis is a rare site of recurrence. There is a question about whether or not the risk might be increased with the use of scalp cooling. Two cases of breast cancer with scalp metastases as first metastatic site are presented. The first patient presented with a scalp metastasis as first metastatic site 9 years following breast cancer chemotherapy treatments; she used scalp cooling for the adjuvant treatment. Second case presented a scalp metastasis as first metastatic site 7 years following treatments for her first cancer; overall, she used scalp cooling in only one of her six adjuvant chemotherapy cycles. Scalp metastases as the first site of recurrence are very rare entities. Scalp cooling is unlikely to have contributed in the cases presented here.     

A case study: prescriptive exercise intervention after bilateral mastectomies

Exercise for cancer patients is gaining support. In the current case study, a female breast cancer patient was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 29 years; she underwent a left modified radical mastectomy. She developed cancer again in the opposite breast at the age of 57 years and had a right modified radical mastectomy. After the second mastectomy (the right breast), the patient received chemotherapy and radiation. Following her cancer treatments, she participated in an exercise intervention for 6 months at the University of Northern Colorado's Rocky Mountain Cancer Rehabilitation Institute. A 6-month reassessment showed that she increased her muscular strength and cardiovascular function in addition to attenuating her cancer-related fatigue and depression. It is recommended that health professionals work together to ensure that a collaborative effort is undertaken to increase functional work capacity that will significantly improve patients' quality of life.     

A case of multiple liver metastases from breast cancer in which we confirmed disappearance of cancer cells after hepatic resection following hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy

A 46-year-old woman underwent right mastectomy for stage IIA breast cancer in 1993. Six years and 8 months after this operation, she was diagnosed as having multiple liver metastasis form the breast cancer. An intra-arterial catheter was inserted percutaneously into the hepatic artery and she was given hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy and general chemoendocrine therapy. The metastatic liver tumors were gradually reduced in size and tumor markers returned to the normal range. However, tumor size was unchanged after February 2001. After obtaining her informed consent from the patient, we performed hepatic resection in December 2001. Histopathologically, three scars were observed and no tumor cell was found. She has been free from recurrence to date. This case suggests that chemoendocrine therapy including hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy is effective for breast cancer patients with liver metastasis.     

Gastric diffuse large B-cell lymphoma after the diagnosis of primary MALT lymphoma of the breast��One case report

Primary breast and gastric lymphomas as manifestations of primary extranodal lymphomas are rare malignancies, and their diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment modalities remain unclear. We report for the first time the simultaneous co-occurrence of these diseases in one patient. A 60-year-old woman was diagnosed with gastric diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) 2.5 years after she was found to have primary mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma of the breast. Although the patient underwent chemotherapy, she died of leukemia that caused irreversible cytopenia of three lineages. The data show that her MALT lymphoma apparently transfigured into gastric DLBCL. This case highlights the importance of evaluating patients for Helicobacter pylori infection when they present with extranodal MALT lymphomas, except gastric ones. Positive test findings should prompt anti-H. pylori therapy to prevent MALT lymphomas from transforming into DLBCLs.     

A long-surviving patient with Stage IV breast cancer with no recurrence after combined therapy of medroxy progesterone acetate (MPA) and intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy

The patient is a 42-year-old woman who had advanced (Stage IV) right breast cancer with contralateral supraclavicular lymph node metastasis. She was treated with the combined use of MPA and the intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy. We administered EPI into the left subclavian artery and the right internal thoracic artery. Total dose of EPI was 210 mg. MPA was administered po at 1,200 mg/day daily. During the chemotherapy, she experienced only grade 2 alopecia. After the chemotherapy, the regressive change was noted in the primary lesion. The clinical response was evaluated CR. She underwent right modified mastectomy and the resection of contralateral supraclavicular lymph nodes. Although the clinical response was very good, the pathological effect was only Grade 1b. Eight years have passed since the operation, and the patient is still alive with no sign of recurrence. It is suggested that this combination therapy may be useful for advanced breast cancer and the like.     

A case of long-term survival of liver metastasis of breast cancer successfully treated with chemotherapy and endocrine therapy

A 42-year-old woman was diagnosed as having hepatic metastasis two years after radical mastectomy for breast cancer. She was initially treated with oophorectomy and cytotoxic chemotherapy, which resulted in complete regression of the lesion within two years after the start of the treatment. She remained free of the disease until the fifth year thereafter, when she again developed a metastatic lesions in her liver. Since then, she has been treated sequentially with various kinds of chemotherapy and endocrine therapy with a certain degree of response to each treatment. She has survived 12 years and three months after the development of liver metastasis. This patient is the longest survivor of hepatic metastasis from breast cancer in the Japaneses literature.     

Effective chemotherapy with docetaxel in a patient with breast cancer who had progressed after high-dose chemotherapy with autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (APBSCT)

A 39-year-old female underwent mastectomy for breast cancer in December 1995. However, two years later, she relapsed with multiple bone metastases. Only a partial response was obtained despite tandem high-dose chemotherapy with autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (APBSCT). Disease progression with bone pain and an increasing in the level of serum NCC-ST439 occurred 5 months after APBSCT. Salvage chemotherapy with docetaxel 60 mg/m2 reduced her symptoms, and the level of serum NCC-ST439 decreased to within the normal range. Ten cycles of docetaxel administration were repeated without severe adverse reactions in an outpatient setting for 10 months. There is little information regarding treatment after relapse from APBSCT for breast cancer. Docetaxel may be an effective agent for patients in such a setting.     

Therapy-related acute promyelocytic leukemia caused by hormonal therapy and radiation in a patient with recurrent breast cancer

We report a patient with therapy-related acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) that may have been caused by regional radiation or hormonal therapy after surgery. A 36-year-old Japanese woman developed right breast cancer and underwent breast-conserving surgery and regional radiation to the right breast without adjuvant systemic therapy because she wished to preserve her fertility. Two years later, she developed multiple bone metastases of breast cancer and received hormonal therapy. During the second line hormonal therapy, she developed APL and received induction and consolidation chemotherapy with all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and a combination of anthracycline and cytarabine. After she achieved a complete remission (CR) of the APL, her bone metastases of breast cancer progressed. She received weekly paclitaxel treatments and her bone marrow function recovered. However, 9 months later, her APL relapsed; she achieved a second CR after undergoing ATRA therapy again. This patient is thought to be a rare case of secondary leukemia, since the leukemia might have been caused by hormonal therapy and regional radiation without chemotherapy.     

Two cases of secondary soft tissue sarcomas after radiotherapy and radiochemotherapy

BACKGROUND: The development of secondary soft tissue sarcomas after chemo-radiotherapy is a rare and little known event, but its frequency is increasing. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We report two cases of secondary soft tissue sarcomas. The first is the case of a 51-year-old woman treated for Hodgkin's disease with chemotherapy and radiotherapy 15 years before she developed a high-grade malignant pleural sarcoma. The patient had no history of asbestos exposure. The second is the case of a 64-year-old woman with a giant cell malignant histiocytoma secondary to colorectal cancer treated with surgery and radiotherapy nine years before. The patients were not eligible for surgery or radiotherapy. Both were treated with chemotherapy (ifosfamide and epirubicin) without any relevant secondary effects; however, the response to therapy was poor. CONCLUSIONS: The causes of secondary malignancies are multifactorial, but radiation therapy and chemotherapy are certainly implicated in the development of post-therapy neoplasms that are difficult to treat.     

Metastatic breast cancer in a 54-year-old woman: integrative treatment with yttrium-90 radioembolization

In 1993, a 54-year-old woman was diagnosed with early-stage breast adenocarcinoma and treated with doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide followed by tamoxifen. Nine years later, the patient presented for integrative treatment, with liver metastases. Carcinoembryonic antigen was significantly elevated. The patient was started on a heavily fractionated, multiple-agent chemotherapy regimen; however, she underwent significant adverse effects and the treatment was suspended. She then started on intravenous nutrition along with specific nutritional supplements. Two months later, a similar chemotherapeutic regimen was started in association with her existing nutritional protocol. One month later, the carcinoembryonic antigen began to rise, and a positron emission tomography scan was ordered that revealed the persistence of multiple and extensive liver metastases as well as possible skeletal metastases. The patient was started on an oral bisphosphonate and referred to interventional radiology for consultation on radioembolization with yttrium-90. After being accepted for treatment, the patient under-went a right hepatic lobe angiogram and radioembolization. Within 2 weeks, she realized significant improvements in her clinical and laboratory status; chemotherapy was discontinued. She later underwent radioembolization to her left lobe. Thirteen months after the yttrium-90 treatment, the patient remains on an integrative program with radiographically and clinically stable disease.     

A case of non-metastatic giant mucinous carcinoma of the breast

A surgically resected case of giant mucinous carcinoma of the breast that had remained untreated for 2 years is reported. A 64-year-old postmenopausal woman presented with a large right breast mass (17.4 x 16.5 x 14.5 cm). Although she had noticed a mass in the right breast 2 years previously, she had not sought treatment. Mucinous carcinoma was diagnosed by core needle biopsy and she underwent right modified radical mastectomy with a free skin graft. There were no lymph node metastases or distant metastases. Fourteen months postoperatively, she remains well without evidence of tumor recurrence. Although several reports have suggested that pure mucinous carcinoma of the breast has a favorable prognosis, we need to follow this case until the clinical behavior and the outcome become clear.     

A case of recurrent breast cancer successfully treated with docetaxel]

A 53-year-old female underwent mastectomy for left breast cancer in April, 1993. She was given oral tamoxifen but this had to be discontinued due to its side effects. In March, 1998, she developed bone and lung metastases, in spite of treatment with combination chemotherapy (CEF). We thus treated here with docetaxel 90 mg three times and 40 mg six times. After the chemotherapy, she achieved complete remissions of the lung metastases and a decrease in serum CEA, CA 15-3, NCC-ST439, and BCA225. Adverse reactions to docetaxel were grade 2 alopecia, grade 4 neutropenia, dysgeusia, and fluid retention. All were tolerable. This new agent may play an important future role in chemotherapy for recurrent breast cancer.