Distant metastases of lobular breast cancer: literature review

Invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) comprises up to 15 % of all breast cancers. In contrast to ductal carcinoma, ILC frequently metastasizes into gastrointestinal organs, retroperitoneal space, and urogenital organs, as well as the eye and orbit, and metastases can be diagnosed 10–15 years after treatment of primary breast tumor. Pleomorphic, alveolar, and solid ILC subtypes are the most prone to metastases.

Due to similar morphological picture between ILC and primary tumors with low cell adhesion, differential diagnosis without additional examination methods can be difficult.

The article presents the key signs of distant ILC metastases into various organs and systems, as well as minimal antibody panels for differential diagnosis with primary tumors.

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