Two Cases of Pregnancy-associated Breast Cancer.

Park, Jin Kyung; Park, Cheol Hoon; Lee, Hyun Seung; Kim, Tae Eung; Ro, Duck Yeong; Jung, Jae Keun; Oh, Se Jeong; Maeng, Lee So

Case Report

Korean Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology 2004;47(7):1423-1426.
Published online July 1, 2004.

Two Cases of Pregnancy-associated Breast Cancer.

Jin Kyung Park, Cheol Hoon Park, Hyun Seung Lee, Tae Eung Kim, Duck Yeong Ro, Jae Keun Jung, Se Jeong Oh, Lee So Maeng

¹Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical College, The Catholic University of Korea.
²Department of Surgery, Medical College, The Catholic University of Korea.

Abstract

Pregnancy-associated breast cancer is defined as that occurring during pregnancy or within 1 year after delivery. The incidence of pregnancy-associated breast cancer is 0.2% to 3.8%. Tenderness, engorgement, increased size and increased prominence of the glandular tissue during pregnancy and lactation make mammography and clinical breast examination uncomfortable for the patient and less accurate for the detection of an abnormal breast mass. Pregnancy-associated breast cancer tends to be diagnosed at a more advanced stage, with an attendant adverse prognosis, than in women who are not pregnant or lactating. So physicians should perform a thorough breast examination at the first prenatal visit and maintain a high index of suspicion for cancer. We experienced 2 cases of pregnancy-associated breast cancer patients and reported these cases with a brief review of literature.

Key Words: Pregnancy-associated breast cancer