Presentation and course of brain metastases from breast cancer in a paranoid-schizophrenic patient : a case report

Abstract

Case presentation: This is an unusual case where a 49-year old female patient with known schizophrenia, paranoid type and a history of early-stage breast cancer, which was treated more than 6 years earlier, attempted suicide. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging after this incident revealed the presence of multiple brain metastases as the first symptomatic site of recurrent cancer. Further staging lead to the diagnosis of lung, hilar and mediastinal lymph node metastases and histology confirmed estrogen receptor-positive metastatic cancer. Treatment consisted of whole-brain radiotherapy and letrozole. Twenty-one months later, the patient is in continued partial remission.