Mandibular metastases as first clinical sign of an occult male breast cancer

Abstract

A 73-year-old man presented with a painful swelling of the left temporomandibular joint with no other symptoms. Panoramic radiography showed an osteolytic lesion in the left mandibular body, while magnetic resonance imaging provided the most accurate view of an osteolytic lesion in the left condyle. Skeletal scintigraphy showed increased uptake in the mandibular anatomical area. A diagnosis of metastatic breast adenocarcinoma was made from mandibular biopsies which proved to be ductal carcinoma, with no evidence of any other metastases. Clinicopathologic features of this case are reviewed.