Malignant adenomyoepithelioma of the breast--case report

Malignant adenomyoepithelioma (MAME) of the breast is a rare tumor characterized on the basis of histologic, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural features by malignant proliferation of the epithelial and myoepithelial cells. We report a case of an 80-year-old woman with malignant adenomyoepithelioma of the breast, one of the oldest patients described up to today. A primary tumor in the left breast grew within a short period of time. A modified mastectomy with sampling of the axillary lymph nodes was performed. The lymph nodes did not include any metastatic lesions. In this case the malignancy was evidenced by the presence of a high mitotic rate, several nuclear atypia, necrosis, and local invasion. The tumor was associated with adenosis and in adjacent positions to the infiltrating portions a circumscribed nodule with histological features of benign adenomyoepithelioma was present. Reviewing the literature MAME has been reported in women aged between 26-76 years. The metastatic potential of this entity is not well studied. It appears to have hematogenous rather than lymphatic spread and usually occurs in primary tumors more than 2 cm in size.