Mondor's disease as the initial presentation of breast cancer

Mondor's disease is a rare form of superficial thrombophlebitis most commonly affecting the superficial veins of the anterior chest wall and breast. In most cases, it is a benign and self-limiting condition; however, it may occasionally be associated with breast malignancy. The aim of this paper is to present a case report of a patient in whom Mondor's disease was the first clinical manifestation of breast cancer.

A 30-year-old female patient presented with a painful subcutaneous streak on the left breast extending caudally to the anterior abdominal wall. Clinical examination and ultrasonography confirmed Mondor's disease with findings of superficial thrombophlebitis and absence of blood flow on Doppler imaging. Additional breast ultrasound revealed a suspicious hypoechoic lesion measuring 10.4 mm in the left breast. Core needle biopsy confirmed invasive no special type carcinoma, grade 2, hormone receptor-positive, HER2--negative, and molecular subtype Luminal A. The patient underwent breast-conserving surgery with sentinel lymph node biopsy. The postoperative course was uneventful. Complete resolution of thrombophlebitis occurred 8 weeks later.

Mondor's disease may represent the first clinical manifestation of breast cancer. Patients presenting with newly developed superficial thrombophlebitis of the breast or chest wall should undergo thorough clinical and imaging evaluation of the breasts to exclude underlying malignancy. Early diagnosis enables timely oncological treatment and improves patient prognosis.