title: Cutaneous metastasis as the first manifestation of occult malignant breast neoplasia.
abstract: Cutaneous metastases from primary internal malignancies represent 0.7-9% of patients with cancer. We report a 65-year-old female patient referred for evaluation of normochromic papules on the trunk and upper limbs that had been present for three months. A skin biopsy revealed diffuse cutaneous infiltration by small round cell tumors. Immunohistochemistry was positive for AE1/AE3, CK7, estrogen receptor and mammaglobin. The final diagnosis was cutaneous metastasis of occult breast cancer, since the solid primary tumor was not identified. The location of the primary tumor can not be determined in 5-10% of cases. In these cases, 27% are identified before the patient's death, 57% at autopsy, and the remaining 16% can not be located.
authors.affiliation: Faculdade de Medicina do ABC (FMABC) - Santo André (SP), Brazil.
authors.forename: Ellem Tatiani de Souza
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Weimann
authors.affiliation: Private clinic - Araçatuba (SP), Brazil.
authors.forename: Erica Bruder
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Botero
authors.affiliation: Private clinic - Tubarão (SC), Brazil.
authors.forename: Cinthia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mendes
authors.affiliation: Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Campinas (PUC-Campinas) - Campinas (SP), Brazil.
authors.forename: Marcel Alex Soares Dos
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.affiliation: Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) - Campinas (SP), Brazil.
authors.forename: Rafael Fantelli
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Stelini
authors.affiliation: Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Campinas (PUC-Campinas) - Campinas (SP), Brazil.
authors.forename: Caroline Romanelli T
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Zelenika
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis; D001706:Biopsy; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000556:secondary*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D009382:Neoplasms, Unknown Primary / Q000473:pathology*; D012867:Skin / Q000473:pathology; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary*
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor