Diabetic mastopathy: A clinical and radiological challenge

A 41-year-old woman presented with a lump above the right areola. She also complained of a burning and heavy sensation of the right breast of recent onset. On further history, the patient was an insulin-dependent diabetic of 35 years’ duration. She had no family history of breast disease. On examina...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Debra Ardath Meerkotter, Grace Rubin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AOSIS 2010-12-01
Series:South African Journal of Radiology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://sajr.org.za/index.php/sajr/article/view/457
Description
Summary:A 41-year-old woman presented with a lump above the right areola. She also complained of a burning and heavy sensation of the right breast of recent onset. On further history, the patient was an insulin-dependent diabetic of 35 years’ duration. She had no family history of breast disease. On examination, a palpable thickening above the right areola was detected. Bilateral mammography revealed dense fibro-glandular tissue, denser in the right retro-areolar region than the left, with right peri-areolar skin thickening. There was no discreet mass nor suspicious microcalcifications or axillary adenopathy. Ultrasound (US) demonstrated an ill-defined peri-areolar region of decreased echogenicity and posterior shadowing. Core biopsy under US guidance showed abundant thick collagen bands containing epitheloid fibroblasts and a stroma with small capillary-sized and larger muscularised blood vessls, some of which contained peri-vascular lymphocytic inflammatory cells. Small ductal elements and an occasional lobule showed a peri-ductal and a peri- and intra-lobular lymhocytic and plasma cell infiltrate. These features were in keeping with sclerosing lymphocytic mastitis, known also as diabetic mastopathy.
ISSN:1027-202X
2078-6778