Hypersplenism in advanced breast cancer: report of a patient treated with splenectomy.

A patient with widespread metastatic breast cancer had thrombocytopenia and severe anemia due to splenic hyperfunction, confirmed by chromium51-labeled red cell survival and sequestration studies. Marked splenic enlargement was produced by metastatic tumor. After she failed to respond to steroids, her hematologic status was improved by splenectomy, and has been stable for 16 months. Hypersplenism may be suspected as a cause of severe hemolytic anemia in advanced carcinoma. If the patient's general status is otherwise compatible with long comfortable survival, appropriate diagnostic studies and consideration of splenectomy are warranted.