Intracystic papillary carcinoma in the male breast: A diagnostic challenge

Breast carcinoma in men is rare, and “intracystic papillary carcinoma (IPC)” of a male breast is an extremely rare entity accounting for <1% of all breast malignancies. It represents a small distinctive subgroup of noninvasive breast cancer. We discuss a case of a 70-year-old male presented with left breast lump of 6 months duration which rapidly increasing in size over 10-day period showed cystic mass with a mural nodule on ultrasonography. A diagnosis of papillary neoplasm was awarded (suspicious for malignancy-C4) on cytology. The patient underwent simple mastectomy, and a final diagnosis of “IPC” was confirmed on histopathology. IPC of the male breast is an extremely rare entity with favorable prognosis. Triple assessment (clinical examination and radiological and histological assessment) is necessary to diagnose IPC. Pathologic diagnosis can be difficult at classical histological examination; thus, the absence of myoepithelial cells layer by immunohistochemical study can be useful.