Intramedullary spinal cord metastases in breast carcinoma: report of two cases and review of the literature.

Intramedullary spinal cord metastases (ISCM) are usually the result of rapidly progressing systemic malignancy. Breast cancer is one of the most common solid tumors with a high propensity of CNS dissemination. In the present report we describe two new cases with advanced breast cancer developing ISCM after a variable disease course. One of these patients had brain metastases at presentation, while at relapse developed leptomeningeal carcinomatosis which was treated successfully, but followed shortly, as a terminal event, by ISCM and parenchymal brain recurrence. The other patient was treated initially for locally advanced breast cancer and after multiple locoregional relapses, she developed liver metastases and subsequent ISCM and asymptomatic parenchymal brain deposits. Both patients experienced a rather rapidly evolving disease course leading to death 2 and 4 months, respectively, after widespread neuraxis dissemination of their cancer. Both these cases, added to the list of the anecdotally reported cases of ISCM after breast cancer, undermine the ominous prognosis and limited treatment options available for this disease manifestation, and an extensive literature review and discussion of similar cases is provided.