Esophageal metastasis from breast carcinoma associated with pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia: an unusual endoscopic diagnosis

A rare recurrence of bilateral breast cancer in the esophagus coincidentally associated with primary gastric cancer: a case report

INTRODUCTION

Cases of esophageal metastasis of breast cancer are extremely rare. We present the case of a patient who developed recurrence as esophageal metastasis following treatment of bilateral breast cancer. Early-stage gastric cancer was also found coincidentally.

CASE PRESENTATION

An 86-year-old Japanese female patient with a history of bilateral breast cancer was found to have a gastric mass on a medical examination. At 72 years of age, she had undergone a total mastectomy with level II axillary lymph node dissection (pT3N0M0 stage II). Left breast cancer was found at the age of 79. A total mastectomy was performed with level II axillary lymph node dissection (pT1N0M0 stage I). At the time of her current admission, our patient complained of dysphagia. A repeat gastrofiberscopy revealed a submucosal lesion in her middle esophagus, located 27cm distal to her incisors, as well as a known type I tumor of the gastric cardia. Computed tomography showed a mass lesion in her middle esophagus that had grown extraluminally and infiltrated the tracheal bifurcation and her left primary bronchus. A boring biopsy of the esophageal lesion was performed under ultrasonic monitoring, and a pathological diagnosis of poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma of the esophagus was obtained. The biopsy of the cardiac lesion revealed moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma of the stomach. The expression status of her hormone receptors indicated that the esophageal lesion reflected metastatic recurrence of her breast cancer with coincidental primary gastric cancer (cT1N0M0 stage IA).

CONCLUSIONS

Esophageal metastasis of breast cancer is extremely rare. An individualized treatment plan combining multimodal approaches should therefore be devised according to the patient's status.

Esophageal metastasis of breast carcinoma

Esophageal metastasis from primary breast cancer is an unusual manifestation. We recently treated a patient with dysphagia, whose breast cancer had been treated in the distant past. A 70-year-old woman had been followed regularly in our outpatient clinic for 14 years after her primary breast cancer treatment, with no apparent tumor recurrence. After 2 years absence, she consulted our clinic with progressive dysphagia. Contrast esophagography and endoscopic examination with ultrasonography revealed a protruding submucosal tumor that was histopathologically diagnosed as esophageal metastasis of breast cancer. Radiation therapy involving a total of 60 Gy in combination with aromatase inhibitor was given. The patient's dysphagia was greatly relieved, concomitant with marked improvement of the stenotic lesion on imaging. Since treatment for recurrent breast cancer is generally palliative, systemic (chemo- and/or endocrine-) therapy in combination with radiotherapy is the first-line option for esophageal metastasis of breast cancer.

A case of esophageal stricture due to metastatic breast cancer diagnosed by endoscopic mucosal resection

Metastasis of breast cancer to the esophagus has been reported but is rare. It is often difficult to diagnose metastases of breast cancer to the esophagus because they are often located in the submucosa and covered with normal mucosa. Although several methods have been reported in order to obtain specimens for pathological diagnosis, the adverse effects including bleeding and perforation were considerable problems. We report a case of a patient with esophageal stricture due to metastatic breast cancer to the esophagus. Pathological diagnosis was successfully obtained using endoscopic mucosal resection of the esophagus.

The utility of EUS-guided FNA in the diagnosis of metastatic breast cancer to the esophagus and the mediastinum

BACKGROUND

Breast cancer can metastasize to the esophagus and the mediastinum. EUS-guided FNA (EUS-FNA) is being used increasingly as a less invasive alternative to mediastinoscopy for procuring a tissue diagnosis of mediastinal disease and may be useful for the diagnosis of breast cancer metastatic to the esophagus and the mediastinum.

METHODS

Twelve women (age range 54-82 years) with a history of breast cancer presented with dysphagia or other symptoms between 1 and 15 years after initial diagnosis and treatment. CT and endoscopy with biopsies suggested a mediastinal mass or lymphadenopathy with extrinsic esophageal compression but failed to provide a tissue diagnosis. EUS-FNA was performed for diagnosis.

RESULTS

Cytologic evaluation of specimens obtained by EUS-FNA confirmed breast cancer metastases in 11 of 12 patients (91%). Recurrent disease was found in intramural masses and periesophageal lymph nodes. No complication resulted from any EUS-FNA procedure.

CONCLUSIONS

EUS-FNA is safe and effective for the diagnosis of breast cancer metastases to the esophagus and the mediastinum. EUS-FNA may be useful as a first-line method of evaluation when breast cancer metastasis to the esophagus and the mediastinum is suspected.

Solitary esophageal metastasis of breast cancer after 11 years: a case report

A patient with dysphagia and a history of breast cancer 11 yr ago was admitted to the hospital. A tumor presumably originating from the esophagus was detected. It could not be surgically removed and biopsy revealed adenocarcinoma. The patient received radiotherapy and chemotherapy consisting of etoposide, adriamycin, and cisplatin. An unexpectedly good response was achieved and the possibility of metastatic breast cancer was reinvestigated. Biopsy specimens showed positive estrogen and progesterone receptor staining. Tamoxifen treatment was started. The patient is well after 5 yr following relapse. Solitary esophageal metastasis of breast cancer is a rare event, especially after a remission period lasting more than a decade. Dysphagia in breast cancer patients should raise the suspicion of metastatic disease as well as esophageal cancer and benign strictures.

Melanoma associated with pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia: a case series and investigation into the role of epidermal growth factor receptor

BACKGROUND

Pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia (PEH) is a reactive epithelial proliferation that occurs in response to underlying infectious, inflammatory, and neoplastic conditions. The histologic features of PEH may simulate squamous cell carcinoma and may obscure an underlying malignant process. The association of PEH with benign melanocytic nevi is well described in the literature. However, reports documenting the association of PEH with melanoma are rare.

METHODS

We examined the demographic and histologic features in 13 cases of melanoma in association with PEH. In addition, we evaluated the possible pathogenic role of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) using immunohistochemical methods.

RESULTS

In each case, histologic examination revealed epidermal hyperplasia with irregular cords of well-differentiated epithelial cells extending into the dermis and infiltrating the melanoma. Although overlap existed, two patterns of epidermal hyperplasia were noted. The majority of cases (69%) exhibited acanthosis, hyperkeratosis, papillomatosis, and irregular infiltrating epithelial cords with squamous eddies. The remaining cases demonstrated basaloid acanthosis, laminated orthokeratosis, and horn cysts. EGFR immunohistochemical studies revealed strong staining within the basal layer of the epithelium, with no discernible difference between the hyperplastic epithelium overlying the melanoma cells and adjacent normal skin. Immunostaining among the melanoma cells was absent to weak in each of the cases. All cases exhibited intense EGFR immunoreactivity in macrophages underlying the epidermal lesions.

CONCLUSIONS

Melanoma is capable of presenting in a variety of histologic guises, including a pattern with PEH. The etiology of PEH, as rarely seen in conjunction with melanoma, unlikely involves EGFR and remains to be elucidated.

Direct esophageal metastasis from a distant primary tumor is a submucosal process: a review of six cases

Malignant esophageal stricture secondary to invasion from a tumor arising in a contiguous organ is a relatively rare finding; even more uncommon is a direct metastasis to the esophagus from a distant primary carcinoma. We present six cases, the largest current series, of esophageal strictures secondary to metastases from a separate primary cancer. We reviewed the records of 20 patients treated at Virginia Mason Medical Center between 1972 and 2000 with a diagnosis of malignant esophageal stricture secondary to an extraesophageal primary carcinoma. Patients whose stricture appeared to be secondary to esophageal invasion or compression from a contiguous tumor or lymph nodes were excluded. The remaining six patients who had metastases to the esophagus itself were reviewed with respect to the nature of the primary tumor, presentation, radiologic and endoscopic findings, and treatment. Among the 20 patients reviewed, 14 were excluded owing to either contiguous involvement from a nearby primary malignancy, regional nodal involvement, or complications of external beam radiation treatment. Six patients were considered to have direct metastasis to the esophagus from distant primary malignancies. The mean age of these patients was 72 years (range 68-74). Two of the primary lesions were lung carcinoma, while four primaries were breast cancers. The average time interval from the diagnosis of a primary tumor to esophageal involvement was 7 years in patients with breast cancer and 5 months in patients with lung cancer. Three patients were palliated with endoscopic dilation and stent placement. The other three patients have died secondary to upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Metastatic cancer to the esophagus is a rare occurrence. The process is usually submucosal and can be difficult to diagnose. The diagnosis should be considered when a patient presents with malignant dysphagia and has a background of distant carcinoma.

Breast carcinoma metastatic to the esophagus. CT findings with pathologic correlation

The common sites of metastasis from breast carcinoma include local and distant lymph nodes, lung parenchyma, bone, liver and brain. While less common, gastrointestinal carcinoma, involving everything from the tip of the tongue to the rectum, secondary to metastatic breast carcinoma have been reported. Many of these lesions occur years after treatment of the primary breast cancer and they can be confused with a second primary. We present a case of breast cancer metastatic to the esophagus which produced symptoms of progressive dysphagia in a women thirteen years after mastectomy and radiation therapy for breast cancer.

Pleomorphic adenoma of the minor salivary gland with pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia of the overlying oral mucosa: report of two cases

Two cases of intra-oral pleomorphic adenoma with marked pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia of the overlying oral mucosa are reported. Incisional biopsy specimens, taken a few weeks before surgical excision of the tumor, showed no squamous cell element. Surgically excised specimens revealed pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia with hyperortho- and para-keratinization, which extended from overlying oral squamous epithelium, where an incisional biopsy was performed into the deep tumor area. Approximately half of the tumor area in case 1 and one-third in case 2 were occupied by hyperplastic squamous epithelium of the oral mucosa. Although the induction mechanism of such prominent pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia of the overlying oral mucosa occupying more than one-third of the tumor area could not be understood, it is thought that surgical injury and/or focal anesthesia during the incisional biopsy played an important role. To the best of our knowledge, these two cases represent the first reported association between benign salivary gland tumor and marked pseudoepitheliomatous hyperplasia of the overlying oral mucosa.

Solitary esophageal metastasis of breast cancer with 15 years' latency: a case report and review of the literature

A 68-year-old woman with a history of breast and colon cancer at the ages of 48 and 65 years, respectively, who presented with dysphagia is described. An upper gastrointestinal series and endoscopic examination revealed a circumferential stricture without ulceration in the middle-third area of the esophagus. Computed tomography demonstrated a submucosal tumor in the esophageal wall. A biopsy specimen obtained from the mucosa overlying the tumor revealed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma, suggesting metastasis from the previous breast cancer. Subtotal esophagectomy with reconstruction was performed. Macroscopically, a submucosal tumor measuring 2.0 x 1.7 cm was observed in the resected esophagus. Microscopic examination revealed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma, which was quite similar histologically to the breast cancer resected 15 years previously. Enzyme immunoassay and immunohistochemical analyses of the resected tumor revealed positivity for both estrogen and progesterone receptor, confirming the diagnosis of a metastatic cancer from the previous breast tumor.

Esophagectomy for metastatic carcinoma of the esophagus from lung cancer

A patient with metastatic carcinoma of the esophagus from lung cancer is reported. The patient was a 54-year-old woman who underwent a left lower lobectomy for lung cancer 5 years previously. The authors performed a thoracic esophagectomy, dissection of mediastinal lymph nodes, and reconstruction of the esophagus; the surgery was followed by chemotherapy. Because the histologic pattern of the esophageal tumor was similar to that of lung cancer and mucosal involvement was not seen, the esophageal tumor was interpreted to be a metastasis from lung cancer. The patient is well without recurrence of disease 23 months after operation. This is the first report of a successful esophagectomy for metastatic carcinoma of the esophagus from lung cancer.

Case report: esophageal metastasis from breast carcinoma presenting as achalasia

Metastatic breast carcinoma to the esophagus most often presents with a mid-esophageal stricture. Involvement of the gastroesophageal junction by breast carcinoma is distinctly unusual. The authors report the case of a 78-year-old woman who presented with clinical and radiologic features of achalasia secondary to breast carcinoma, metastatic to the gastroesophageal junction. Metastatic breast cancer to the gastroesophageal junction should be added to the list of conditions mimicking achalasia.