Metastatic melanoma in the breast: A report of 27 cases

Abstract

Malignant melanoma is the most rapidly increasing cancer in the world. Metastatic disease occurs in 20% of patients. Metastases to the breast are rare. Melanoma is, however, among the most commonly reported primary tumors to metastasize to the breast. With the increasing incidence of melanoma, this complication is being encountered with greater frequency. A retrospective case review of our melanoma registry to find all patients with melanoma metastatic to the breast for the period from 1975 to 2005. Twenty-seven patients were found to have breast metastases from melanoma during this period. Twenty were premenopausal females (70%) with a mean age of 41.4 years. Most patients had primary lesions on the upper body (82.6%). Four patients had a lower extremity primary. The median interval between diagnosis of the primary and breast involvement was 52.5 month. Five patients had bilateral breast involvement, and all had other sites of metastases. The median survival after diagnosis of breast metastases was 12.9 months. Metastases to the breast from melanoma are uncommon but should be suspected in patients with a breast mass and a prior history of melanoma even years after a primary has been removed.