A case of axillary traumatic neuroma mimicking local recurrence following cancer surgery and a review of the literature

Abstract

Traumatic neuroma (TN) is a non-neoplastic proliferative response developing against neuronal injury. Its pathogenesis is unknown: While its overall incidence is low, the incidence of traumatic neuroma development following mastectomy is even lower. Thirty-eight post-mastectomy traumatic neuromas in 30 patients were reported in the literature. Only two of these were in the axillary region, whereas the others had originated from the mastectomy scar tissue. Even though the ultrasonographic examination reveals the features of a benign mass, performing a histopathological examination is a must for definitive diagnosis of the mass and exclusion of local recurrence, mainly when it has developed following cancer surgery. Here, we aimed to discuss in the light of the literature a patient who had undergone mastectomy and axillary dissection with the diagnosis of invasive ductal carcinoma eight years ago and underwent recurrent axillary dissection with the preliminary diagnosis of axillary metastasis.