Postirradiation morphea in a breast cancer patient.

Department of Pathology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53226, USA.

We present the case of a 52-year-old woman who underwent lumpectomy and radiation therapy for breast carcinoma and 2 years later presented with changes limited to the breast radiation field including hyperpigmentation, retraction, and skin thickening. These clinical features, along with pathologic findings, were diagnostic of postirradiation morphea. It is important to be aware of this rare complication of radiation therapy because it clinically presents with symptoms mimicking malignancy and may be misinterpreted as recurrent carcinoma or even angiosarcoma.

PMID: 16509846 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]