Breast cancer and pregnancy

case report

Abstract

Breast cancer during pregnancy is a clinical situation becoming increasingly common and challenging for patients and their physicians. The diagnostic methods and the role of interruption of pregnancy are controversial subjects regarding treatment and prognosis. The impact of treatment on the fertility of the patient and the effects of chemotherapy in newborns, are also controversial. This article presents the report of the case of a pregnant woman with breast cancer, as well as a discussion of the diagnostic, therapeutic and clinical implications. This is a 35 years old patient, 10 weeks pregnant with a 2 cm palpable lump in the right breast and a 1 cm lymph node in the ipslateral axilla with 4 months of complain. Mammography and ultrasonography showed the nodule, which according to the cytologic and histopathologic examination, was compatible with an invasive ductal carcinoma in clinical stage IIB. The patient underwent to a radical mastectomy followed by adjuvant chemotherapy and hormone therapy. After the cesarean, the patient did not show any evidence of disease and her child was healthy. Currently, she is asymptomatic in use of tamoxifen and the child is unchanged after four years of follow up.