Supplementary Material for: Breast Cancer and Sarcoidosis: Case Series and Review of the Literature

<b><i>Background:</i></b> Sarcoidosis is a chronic inflammatory disease of unknown etiology, which can involve different organs and systems. Accordingly, sarcoidosis can mimic breast cancer, making the differential diagnosis very difficult. <b><i>Case Report:</i></b> 5 patients with a diagnosis of both sarcoidosis and breast cancer followed by the Rabin Medical Center between January 1993 and June 2012 were enrolled in this study. Additionally, a comprehensive literature review which identified 104 patients diagnosed with breast cancer and sarcoidosis was carried out. In both populations reviewed, the average age at diagnosis of sarcoidosis and breast cancer was 57 years. Among the 66 patients with both sarcoidosis and breast cancer, sarcoidosis preceded breast cancer in 31 cases, followed it in 23 cases, and appeared concurrently in 10 cases. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Based on our clinical cases and literature review, a histological study is recommended over imaging if sarcoidosis or breast cancer may be present. Furthermore, breast cancer is rarely associated with sarcoidosis or sarcoidosis-like reaction.

<b><i>背景：</i></b> 结节病（sarcoidosis）是一种病因未明的慢性炎症性疾病，可累及多器官多系统。因此，结节病的临床表现可与乳腺癌（breast cancer）相混淆，导致二者的鉴别诊断极为困难。<b><i>病例报告：</i></b> 本研究纳入了1993年1月至2012年6月期间于拉宾医学中心（Rabin Medical Center）接受随访并确诊为结节病与乳腺癌共患的5例患者。此外，本研究还开展了全面的文献回顾，共筛选出104例乳腺癌合并结节病的患者。在本次回顾的两类人群中，结节病与乳腺癌的确诊平均年龄均为57岁。在共计66例结节病与乳腺癌共患患者中，31例先确诊结节病，23例先确诊乳腺癌，另有10例两病同时确诊。<b><i>结论：</i></b> 基于本研究的临床病例与文献回顾结果，若疑似结节病或乳腺癌，推荐优先开展组织病理学检查而非影像学检查。此外，乳腺癌与结节病或类结节病反应的相关性较为罕见。