Invasive micropapillary carcinomas arising 42 years after augmentation mammoplasty: A case report and literature review

BACKGROUND: There has been no definitive consensus regarding the causal relationships between foreign bodies in the breast and carcinogenesis. This report describes the first case of invasive micropapillary carcinomas after augmentation mammoplasty. Multiple tumors located in immediate contact with the siliconomas suggested a causal link between the siliconomas and carcinomas. CASE PRESENTATION: This report presents the case of a 64-year-old female who underwent liquid silicone injections for augmentation mammoplasty 42 years previously. Eight years before admission, siliconomas of the left breast were removed due to pain and discomfort. The patient visited the hospital for further treatment of newly diagnosed carcinoma of the left breast. Images showed multiple tumors located in various areas of the left breast. The pathological findings of the left breast showed each tumor to be solitary and not continuous with the others. The tumors were diagnosed to be invasive micropapillary carcinomas, and they all came into immediate contact with the residual siliconomas. The siliconomas were therefore suspected to have played a causative role in the development of the breast cancer. CONCLUSION: This rare case of multiple invasive micropapillary carcinomas following augmentation mammoplasty provides evidence that siliconomas may lead to carcinomas. Although a causal relationship was not established unequivocally, we review evidence that suggest silicone gel may cause cell damage responsible for carcinoma development.