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Cases and Literature Review of Breast Sparganosis

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Abstract

Background

Sparganosis is a seldom encountered disease of the breast. Based on the results of previous studies and our own experience, we investigated the clinical characteristics of breast sparganosis.

Method

Four patients who were treated for breast sparganosis at Samsung Medical Center were included in the study, and additional data were retrieved from the Index Medicus and the Science Citation Index (SCI). The Korean Medical (KM) database and the Korean Association of Medical Journal Editors (KAMJE) database were searched to include information from Korean journals that is not included in international citation indexes.

Results

Among 35 patients, 8 (32%) had a record of oral ingestion of an intermediary host. All patients presented with a breast mass, with migration in 6 cases (25%) and pain or an itching sensation in 6 cases (25%). Elongated tubular structures were found in the subcutaneous layer in 22 cases (88%) during radiologic exam. All patients underwent complete surgical excision. Twenty-seven of 29 (93.1%) patients’ spargana was separated and confirmed grossly. Histologically, granulomatous inflammation was the most common feature. A single worm was extracted in 16 cases (76.2%) and 5 cases (23.8%) had multiple worms.

Conclusion

Sparganosis tends to present as a suspicious mass in the subcutaneous layer of the breast. Complete surgical excision is the treatment of choice, with careful postoperative surveillance.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by a grant of the Korea Healthcare Technology R&D Project, Ministry for Health & Welfare Affairs, Republic of Korea (NTX2101012).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Breast and Endocrine Surgery, Department of Surgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, 50 Irwon-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, 135-710, Republic of Korea

    MinYoung Koo, Jung-Han Kim, Jee Soo Kim, Jeong Eon Lee, Seok Jin Nam & Jung-Hyun Yang

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  1. MinYoung Koo
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  2. Jung-Han Kim
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  3. Jee Soo Kim
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jeong Eon Lee.

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Koo, M., Kim, JH., Kim, J.S. et al. Cases and Literature Review of Breast Sparganosis. World J Surg 35, 573–579 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-010-0942-1

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