[Lupus vulgaris as the etiology of tuberculous mastitis]

We report the rare case of granulomatous tuberculous mastitis based on lupus vulgaris in a 73-year-old female patient. The most important diagnostic procedure was the detection of mycobacterial DNA-sequences in paraffin-embedded tissues using the polymerase-chain-reaction (PCR). A combined antituberculous therapy lead to complete remission within 14 months after the diagnosis was established. The incidence of tuberculous mastitis among surgically treated lesions of the breast is less than 0.025 percent. Because of the frequent localisation of this disease in the upper outer quadrant of the breast and suspicious findings in mammography, tuberculous mastitis is one, even if rare, differential diagnosis for breast cancer.