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Case Report
Primary breast lymphoma in a male
1 Higher Specialist General Surgery Trainee, Department of General and Vascular Surgery, Mater Dei Hospital, St. Paul’s Bay, Malta
2 Specialist Breast and General Surgeon, Department of General and Vascular Surgery, Mater Dei Hospital, St. Paul’s Bay, Malta
3 Consultant Breast and General Surgeon, Department of General and Vascular Surgery, Mater Dei Hospital, St. Paul’s Bay, Malta
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Marc Grech
9, Triq id-Duluri, St. Paul’s Bay,
Malta
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Article ID: 101538Z01MG2026
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Grech M, Ilgun AS, Agius J. Primary breast lymphoma in a male. Int J Case Rep Images 2026;17(1):47–51.ABSTRACT
Introduction: Primary breast lymphoma (PBL) accounts for less than 0.5% of total breast cancers and 1–2% of extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphomas. It mainly affects women, with male presentations being exceedingly rare and underrepresented in the literature. Primary breast lymphoma presents similarly to primary breast carcinoma, posing diagnostic challenges and risks of delaying treatment. This case emphasizes the importance of maintaining a high index of suspicion when assessing male breast lumps.
Case Report: A 68-year-old gentleman presented to his general practitioner with a new left breast lump, present for several weeks, associated with ipsilateral axillary lymphadenopathy. He was referred to the breast clinic, where examination revealed a palpable, solid lesion in the left lower outer quadrant with localized discomfort but no skin or nipple changes. The initial clinical suspicion was that of primary breast carcinoma. Triple assessment demonstrated a lobulated breast lesion measuring 16 × 8 × 14 mm with axillary lymphadenopathy. Sampling of the axillary node showed reactive changes. Core biopsy of the breast lesion revealed grade 3A classic follicular lymphoma. Following multidisciplinary team discussion, the patient was referred to a hematologist. Due to multiple comorbidities, treatment options were carefully considered. He received one cycle of bendamustine and rituximab but subsequently experienced clinical deterioration and elected for palliative care.
Conclusion: Primary breast lymphoma in males is rare and can resemble breast carcinoma at presentation. A high index of suspicion and adherence to triple assessment are essential for accurate diagnosis. A proper multidisciplinary approach should be devised based on patient compliance and clinical condition.
Keywords: Breast cancer, Extranodal lymphoma, Male breast lump, Primary breast lymphoma
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Acknowledgments
Artificial Intelligence, Chat GPT version 5.4 was used in parts of the text solely to aid in grammar correction and in the improvement of sentence structure. All content was reviewed by the authors and the authors take full responsibility for the accuracy and scientific integrity of the paper.
Author ContributionsMarc Grech - Substantial contributions to conception and design, Acquisition of data, Drafting the article, Final approval of the version to be published
Ahmet Serkan Ilgun - Analysis of data, Interpretation of data, Revising it critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published
John Agius - Analysis of data, Interpretation of data, Revising it critically for important intellectual content, Final approval of the version to be published
Guarantor of SubmissionThe corresponding author is the guarantor of submission.
Source of SupportNone
Consent StatementWritten informed consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this article.
Data AvailabilityAll relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files.
Conflict of InterestAuthors declare no conflict of interest.
Copyright© 2026 Marc Grech et al. This article is distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium provided the original author(s) and original publisher are properly credited. Please see the copyright policy on the journal website for more information.
