Contralateral axillary lymph node metastasis in second primary Breast cancer: Case report and review of the literature

The rare entity of contra-lateral axillary lymph node metastasis(CAM) has been a debatable topic in the realm of breast cancer management for many years. There remains controversy over whether CAM should be considered distant metastasis or locoregional spread. It is also uncertain why or how CAM occurs. In this case report and review of the literature, we present an 81-year-old female with an apparent second primary breast cancer with synchronous CAM. This paper describes a scenario of altered lymphatic drainage which likely lead to CAM. In this situation, we propose that CAM should be treated with curative intent rather than stage IV disease. We also attempted to gain a better understanding of the histopathology and tumor characteristics of tumors associated with CAM. Our patient was treated with curative intent and remains disease free for over 18 months. This supports the theory that patients with distorted lymphatic drainage from prior interventions who have CAM, should be treated as locoregional extension of the disease.