Iranian Journal of Pathology

Tumor-to-Tumor Metastasis: An Uncommon Case of Metastatic Breast Carcinoma to Pheochromocytoma

Document Type : Case Reports

Authors

Parisa Adelnia
Mitra Heidarpour

Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

https://doi.org/10.30699/ijp.2025.2049764.3396
Abstract
Background & Objective: Tumor-to-tumor metastasis is a rare phenomenon in which one primary tumor metastasizes into another histologically distinct tumor. This report presents a unique case of breast carcinoma metastasizing to a pheochromocytoma, posing significant diagnostic and therapeutic challenges.
Case Presentation: A 71-year-old woman with a history of breast carcinoma—status post mastectomy 7 years prior—presented with elevated levels of cancer antigen 15-3 (CA15-3), raising suspicion of disease recurrence or metastasis. Imaging studies revealed a mass in the adrenal gland. Surgical excision of the adrenal lesion was performed, and subsequent histopathological and immunohistochemical analyses confirmed the coexistence of two distinct tumor components: primary pheochromocytoma and metastatic breast carcinoma.
Conclusion: Although tumor-to-tumor metastasis is exceedingly rare, awareness of this entity is crucial for accurate diagnosis and effective treatment planning. This case underscores the importance of considering prior malignancies in the differential diagnosis of new adrenal masses and highlights the complexities involved in managing a hormone-secreting neoplasm concurrently harboring metastatic disease.

Keywords

Tumor-To-Tumor Metastasis
Breast Carcinoma
Pheochromocytoma
Adrenal Metastasis
Secondary Malignancy

Subjects

Copyright © 2025. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution- 4.0 International License which permits Share, copy and redistribution of the material in any medium or format or adapt, remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

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Iranian Journal of Pathology
Volume 20, Issue 3
Summer 2025
Pages 326-329

  • Receive Date 05 March 2025
  • Revise Date 16 March 2025
  • Accept Date 06 June 2025

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