Invasive cribriform carcinoma of the male breast

Abstract

Male breast cancer is rare and it accounts for about 1 % of all breast cancers. Men of African and Jewish descent have higher risk of developing breast cancer. Invasive cribriform carcinoma of the breast, which has a good prognosis, is rarer particularly in male patients and only few cases have been reported in the literature. A young adult male presented with a painless, left breast mass of one-year duration at the surgical out-patient department of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital. On examination, a 24x16x6 cm mass, involving all four quadrants, attached to the overlying skin and underlying structure, was palpated in the left breast. It was non-tender and there was no differential warmth. Imaging studies revealed a Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BIRADS) IV lesion. On histopathology examination, an infiltrating carcinoma which was disposed in a cribriform pattern was seen. The neoplasm comprised of fairly monomorphic cells that exhibited increased nucleocytoplasmic ratio, moderate eosinophilic cytoplasm, vesicular nuclei and prominent nucleoli. Immunohistochemistry for estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor and HER-2 revealed a luminal A tumour. A diagnosis of invasive cribriform carcinoma of the breast was made. We report the first known case of invasive cribriform carcinoma of the breast in a male patient from Nigeria.