[Occult carcinoma of the breast presenting as an axillary node enlargement]

The authors discuss ten cases of occult carcinoma of the breast which presented initially as the axillary node enlargement. All cases were proven as adenocarcinoma. Both mammography and ultrasonography revealed the tumor in 3 cases, while in the remaining 7 cases malignant lumps were not visualized. Multiple studies to detect an extra mammary site proved to be negative. A concealed carcinoma of the breast was found in 9 patients with careful sectioning of the resected breast specimens. Only one patient in whom carcinoma of the breast could not be detected has survived well for 6 years after the mastectomy. Parasternal node involvement was not identified in all 7 patients of who had received an extended radical mastectomy. Three patients died of the disease within 45 mo. Seven patients are free of recurrence for 1 to 10 years (average 6 1/2 Y). Prognosis of the patients in this group are as good as and/or sometimes better than those of the patients with axillary nodes pathologically positive.