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Did Rembrandt's Bathsheba really have breast cancer?
1Queensland Radium Institute Mater Centre, South Brisbane, Australia.
Background:
Rembrandt's Bathsheba (Louvre, Paris) reveals an abnormality of the left breast and axilla. Previously breast cancer has been suggested as the probable diagnosis.
Methods:
The present paper reviews the clinical history as well as the clinical findings.
Results:
Inconsistencies, pitfalls in the diagnosis and the consequences of the possibility of a different model for the body of the figure are discussed.
Conclusion:
An alternative diagnosis of an infective process such as tuberculous mastitis or, less likely, chronic lactational breast abscess is suggested.
