Authors:

Abstract

Introduction: Locally advanced breast cancer remains an important clinical problem, particularly in resource-poor settings. The prevalence is high in developing countries because of minimal breast awareness programmes, neglect, and the limited use of the multidisciplinary approach in management. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy is the mainstay of management, but the question as to whether primary surgical care could be used in resource-poor settings is of certain value and interest.

Case presentation: We present the case of a 42-year-old African woman with a locally advanced carcinoma of the right breast and heavy nodal involvement only (T₃, N₂, M₀). She underwent a simple mastectomy with en bloc lymphadenectomy to level II (axillary vein) followed by adjuvant radiotherapy to the mastectomy bed and systemic chemotherapy. There was no clinical evidence of local recurrence or distant metastases at 2 years’ follow-up.

Conclusions: Primary surgical treatment may be acceptable in selected patients with locally advanced breast cancer. Further studies in the form of a clinical trial would ascertain the beneficial role of surgery in locally advanced breast cancer, especially in resource-poor settings.

Keywords: Case report, Breast cancer, Locally advanced, Surgery, Adjuvant treatment