Metaplastic breast carcinoma producing prominent basal lamina with neuroendocrine differentiation: A case report

Metaplastic breast carcinoma (MBC) is a heterogeneous group of invasive breast carcinomas (IBCs) characterized by the differentiation of the neoplastic epithelium toward squamous cells and/or mesenchymal-appearing elements. The present study describes the case of a 42-year-old woman who underwent a mastectomy and sentinel lymph node biopsy for two tumors in their left breast. One of the resected tumors was diagnosed as MBC with neuroendocrine (NE) differentiation and the other was diagnosed as IBC of no special type. The MBC tumor contained a matrix composed of basal lamina with a focal area of myxoid matrix and squamoid differentiation. To the best of our knowledge, the present study is the first report of MBC producing prominent basal lamina. The patient has remained alive and well for >10 years without recurrence, and has been treated with oral and injected anticancer drugs.