Abstract
BackgroundWhereas lymphoma of the female breast is already rare, lymphoma of the male breast has only anecdotally been reported. Within a study of 32 lymphoma of the breast reported between 1973 and 2014 as Burkitt lymphoma, we observed a single male case, which we report here.Case presentationA 72-years-old Caucasian man presented with a mass in his left breast. Clinical history included prior basal cell carcinoma, leiomyosarcoma, and administration of spironolactone. The reference pathology diagnosis at presentation was Burkitt lymphoma according to the Kiel Classification. The present re-investigation using fluorescence in situ hybridization revealed an IGH-MYC translocation and a break in the BCL2 locus in the tumor cells. Thus, in light of the current WHO classification, the diagnosis was revised to high-grade B-cell lymphoma with MYC and BCL2 rearrangement, Burkitt morphology (so-called “double-hit” lymphoma). Genome-wide chromosomal imbalance mapping revealed a complex pattern of aberrations in line with this diagnosis. The aberrations, including copy-number gains in chromosomes 3q and 18 and focal homozygous loss in 9p21.3, resembled typical changes of lymphomas affecting “immune-privileged” sites.ConclusionThe present case adds to the understanding of the pathogenesis of male breast lymphomas, about which hardly any molecular characterization has been published yet.
Highlights
Whereas lymphoma of the female breast is already rare, lymphoma of the male breast has only anecdotally been reported
Less than 50 cases of male breast lymphoma have been reported in the literature [1, 2]
Bilateral mastectomy was performed and reference pathological analyses of the excised tissue led at that time to the diagnosis of Burkitt lymphoma of the breast according to the Kiel Classification
Summary
Primary lymphoma of the male breast is an extremely rare presentation affecting males in the fourth to seventh decades of life [1, 2]. Case Presentation The tumor tissue sample of the at diagnosis 72-year-old Caucasian man was obtained at the Lymph Node Registry in Kiel (Germany) more than 25 years ago. His main complaint was an asymptomatic unilateral progressive mass of his left breast persisting over 3 months. Bilateral mastectomy was performed and reference pathological analyses of the excised tissue led at that time to the diagnosis of Burkitt lymphoma of the breast according to the Kiel Classification. During a retrospective survey of breast and ovarian lymphomas historically diagnosed as Burkitt lymphoma at the Lymph Node Registry in Kiel (Germany), archived tumor materials (formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded, [FFPE]) of the case described above were retrieved from the files and investigated applying up-to-date technologies. Attempts to perform whole-exome sequencing from the tumor failed due to technical reasons likely caused by the limited preservation of the historic tissue
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