AUTOIMMUNE PROCESSES AS PARANEOPLASTIC MANIFESTATIONS IN FAMILIAL BREAST-CANCER

In two patients, mother and daughter, L with breast cancer a paraneoplastic syndrome of probably autoimmune pathogenesis developed in the course of the neoplastic disease. In the mother the cancer occurred when she was aged 51, first in the left and then, 4 years later, in the right breast. A local recurrence 18 years later caused a pericardial effusion and further tumour recurrences were associated with symptoms like those in Sjogren's syndrome, as well as bullous pemphigoid and polyneuropathy. Antinuclear antibodies, extractable nuclear antigen antibodies and rheuma factors were demonstrated in serum. Both symptoms and antibody titres regressed under treatment with tamoxifen and various cytostatic drugs. The patient died aged 74 years. - The daughter underwent a lumpectomy for breast cancer when aged 39 years, followed by mastectomy for local recurrence after 2 years. A further 2 years later she was found to be anaemic with a positive Coombs test (1 : 1024) and antibodies against IgG and complement. Metastases developed later. In her case, too, clinical and serological findings clearly regressed under treatment with tamoxifen and chemotherapy. She died, aged 45 years, from the consequences of further metastases.