Razi Journal of Medical Sciences

Adenoid cystic carcimona of the breast is considered a rare entity with a comparatively favourable prognosis. We report the case of a 44 year old woman and review another 152 cases published to date in the pertinent literature, including two cases from Iran.

The diagnosis is made by histological examination which shows the presence of pseudo- cysts encased in cellular masses hespedup, composing epithelium and myoepithelial elements. These are sometimes visible with light microscopy, and if necessary confirmed by electron microscopy and using immunohistochemical techniques.

It is now realised that the myo- epithelial cell plays a role in the histogenesis of cylindroma. The outcome is usually good after simple surgical removal which has to be sufficient to avoid local recurrences.

All the same there have been rare cases of metastases in the literature. Which means that these cases should be followed up carefully.