Rare metaplastic breast malignancies often reveal extensive vascularity.

2003 MAY 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Rare metaplastic breast malignancies often reveal extensive vascularity.

According to recent research from Italy, "Metaplastic breast carcinomas are rare neoplasms showing both carcinomatous and sarcomatous elements. In this report we describe eleven cases of metaplastic breast carcinoma focusing on pathological features and the clinical behavior of six patients with breast carcinoma with chondroid metaplasia (MCC). We collected eleven cases from 1996 to 2001: immunohistochemical tests were performed in order to obtain data on estrogen and progesterone receptors and the production of p53 gene and HER/2 neu."

"Neoangiogenesis was studied counting vessels immunohistochemically stained with CD31 antibody. Six cases showed chondroid metaplasia, three cases were spindle cell carcinoma and two were metaplastic squamous carcinoma," stated R. Bellino and colleagues, University of Turin.

"The majority of patients (64%) had pT2 tumors without axillary node metastases: only two cases with spindle or squamous metaplasia showed nodal involvement. Fifty percent of MCC were pT1b-c tumors: no axillary metastases were observed."

"Vascular invasion was observed in all squamous and spindle cell types and in 66% of MCC: estrogen and progesterone receptors were absent in 90% of the tumors," said researchers.

"Immunohistochemical staining for HER2/neu was detected in 72% of spindle cell and squamous carcinomas and in 33% of MCC. Three cases staining highly for p53 were chondroid carcinomas: the staining was uniform both in carcinomatous and in sarcomatous tissue. The ...