Zygomatic metastasis from breast cancer

Breast cancer continues to be the second most common cancer among women, after nonmelanoma skin cancer; in the United States, there is an average lifetime risk of 11% for developing a breast malignancy. Metastatic tumors from distant primary foci to the maxillofacial (MF) region are reported to account for only 1% of all MF malignancies, usually with grave prognosis. In the MF region, the bones more frequently involved in metastasis are the mandible, maxilla, temporal bone, frontal bone, and malar bone; the soft tissues more affected are gingiva, parotid gland, tongue, submandibular gland, and cheek. We describe a unique case of a solitary mass found in the body of the right zygoma, revealing a metastasis from breast cancer. According to the literature, the zygomatic complex is a very unusual site for metastasis; we found only 4 cases of metastatic localization from lung, rectum, liver, and uterine cancer. In MF region, oral and nasal cavity has been described as atypical sites of metastasis from breast cancer; this is to our knowledge the first recorded instance of malar metastasis from breast cancer.