Myoepithelial carcinoma of the breast

Breast carcinoma is the commonest cancer among females in a majority of the Indian cities. The advances in the research and management have improved the breast cancer survival significantly in the past three decades globally. Adenocarcinoma is the commonest histological variant which arises from the ductal epithelia. The myoepithelial cells (ME) are the normal components of the breast parenchyma, which separate the ductal epithelia from the basement membrane and the stroma. The pure ME cell carcinoma is extremely rare and only 38 cases have been reported so far in the indexed literature. This may owe to the difficulties in the identification, and the non availability of established diagnostic criteria. We herein describe the clinical, radiological and the pathological characteristics of a case of myoepithelial carcinoma, to supplement the available literature. The possible impact of these cells in clinical practice was also reviewed. Identification and the further research on the genesis of these tumours, and the pathways by which the ME cells regulate the milieu interior of the breast epithelia, may unravel new molecular targets to prevent or treat both epithelial and myoepithelial cancers at early stages.