Secondary breast carcinoma after completely remitted chronic myeloid leukemia following targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy

We describe a rare case of secondary breast carcinoma after chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) in a 56-year-old woman. The patient was treated with hydroxyurea and imatinib for CML and achieved complete remission (she has since been taking imatinib as the maintenance therapy). Four years later, the patient noticed a firm and painless lump in the left breast, which was diagnosed as ductal carcinoma in situ based on a percutaneous biopsy of the mass. Simple resection and sentinel lymph node biopsy of the left breast were then performed. Pathological studies revealed a medium-grade intraductal carcinoma, with local infiltration associated with invasive micropapillary carcinoma. She received adjuvant endocrine therapy with imatinib after surgery. Breast cancer secondary to CML (treated with imatinib and completely remitted) is extremely rare. This report provides evidence to assist in the diagnosis and treatment for this rare manifestation.