Simultaneous bilateral malignant breast neoplasms in Nigerian women

This study reviews the clinicopathological features and survival of 18 Nigerian women with simultaneous bilateral breast cancer. Twelve (67%) of these patients had bilateral Burkitt's lymphoma of the breast. The average age of these patients was 22 years, and all of the women were pregnant or lactating at the time of initial clinical presentation. The remaining six patients (33%) had bilateral malignant epithelial neoplasms, with lobular carcinoma being present in four cases. The average age of patients with bilateral malignant epithelial tumors was 37 years. None of the 18 patients with simultaneous bilateral breast cancer survived for up to 2 years after diagnosis, indicating that bilateral synchronous breast cancer in Nigerian women is a rapidly progressive and aggressive disease.