January - March 2006, Volume 2, Issue 1

Panourgias E, Zervoudis S, Panagi G, Koureas A, Ivanov S

Unilateral breast edema simulating inflammatory carcinoma of the breast

Acta Endo (Buc) 2006, 2 (1): 91-94
doi: 10.4183/aeb.2006.91

Unilateral breast edema is an uncommon semiologic finding. Lots of etiologies could occur: acute mastitis, acute inflammatory breast cancer, after radiotherapy for breast cancer, lymphatic metastasis and malignant lymphoma. Rarely congestive heart failure could lead to breast edema, since the phenomenon is usually bilateral. In contrast unilateral breast edema from cardiologic etiology is exceptional. We report a case of an 86 year-old woman suffering from congestive heart failure who presented with unilateral breast edema and an imaging appearance of inflammatory breast carcinoma on mammography. The clinical and mammography appearance is described, the differential diagnosis discussed. After the cardiologic treatment, the unilateral breast edema disappeared, and the patient recovered.

Keywords: Unilateral breast edema, trabecular thickening, edema mammographic aspect, cardiologic breast edema

Correspondence: Evagelia Panourgias, Ag. Marinis 37, Melissia, 151 27, Athens, Greece, Tel: +30 6937434569, e-mail: epanourgias@yahoo.com