Primary and secondary breast lymphoma: prevalence, clinical signs and radiological features.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence, clinical signs and radiological features of breast lymphoma.


METHODS
This is a retrospective review of 36 patients with breast lymphoma (22 primary and 14 secondary). 35 patients were female and 1 was male; their median age was 65 years (range 24-88 years). In all patients, the diagnosis was confirmed histopathologically.


RESULTS
The prevalence of breast lymphoma was 1.6% of all identified cases with non-Hodgkin lymphoma and 0.5% of cases with breast cancer. B-cell lymphoma was found in 94% and T-cell lymphoma in 6%. 96 lesions were identified (2.7 per patient). The mean size was 15.8 ± 8.3 mm. The number of intramammary lesions was higher in secondary than in primary lymphoma. The size of the identified intramammary lesions was larger in primary than in secondary lymphoma. Clinically, 86% of the patients presented with solitary or multiple breast lumps. In 14%, breast involvement was diagnosed incidentally during staging examinations.


CONCLUSIONS
On mammography, intramammary masses were the most commonly seen (27 patients, 82%). Architectural distortion occurred in three patients (9%). In three patients (9%), no abnormalities were found on mammography. On ultrasound, the identified lesions were homogeneously hypoechoic or heterogeneously mixed hypo- to hyperechoic. On MRI, the morphology of the lesions was variable. After intravenous administration of contrast medium, a marked inhomogeneous contrast enhancement was seen in most cases. On CT, most lesions presented as circumscribed round or oval masses with moderate or high enhancement.
Department of Radiology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany. alex.surow@medizin.uni-halle.de
A
A
Surov
H-J
HJ
Holzhausen
A
A
Wienke
J
J
Schmidt
C
C
Thomssen
D
D
Arnold
K
K
Ruschke
R-P
RP
Spielmann
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000556:secondary; D018567:Breast Neoplasms, Male / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016399:Lymphoma, T-Cell / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008327:Mammography; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014463:Ultrasonography; D055815:Young Adult