Breaking the myth
Hey! The health cognizant metro-sexual Adams! If you thought that the risk of breast cancer was limited to the well endowed Eves alone, here’s an eye opener for you…
Case Study 1: Harish (48), a software engineer in Noida, had been noticing painful lumps on his breasts for almost six months. Recently, divorced from his wife, he didn’t pay much heed to it considering it a sign of the depression he was under. However, when the pain worsened, he finally consulted his family doctor who after a few tests referred him to an oncologist. Harish was in the last stage of breast cancer.
Case Study 2: A successful businessman, Anoop (54), could not believe his reports that claimed that he ‘too’ had breast cancer. His mother had succumbed to breast cancer eight years back. His younger sister (45) was diagnosed of the same last month. Because, women have much more breast tissues than men, they are 100 times more likely to get breast cancer. Nevertheless the fact remains that men too have breast cells that can undergo cancerous changes. So let’s break the myth and discover the facts about the dreadful disease.
Signs and symptoms: Cancer specialist at Max Group of Hospitals, Dr Amit Bhargava asserts, “Knowing the symptoms of male breast cancer may help save one’s life. The earlier the disease is discovered, the more treatment options and the better chance of recovery one has.” Most breast lumps aren’t cancerous. Yet the most common sign of breast cancer for men is a lump or thickening in the breast. Often the lump is painless. Other signs of breast cancer include:
- Skin dimpling or puckering (wrinkling)
- Development of a new retraction or indentation of the nipple
- Redness in the nipple or breast skin
- A spontaneous clear or bloody discharge from the nipple
Risk factors: Having one or even several risk factors doesn’t necessarily mean one becomes sick — some men with more than one risk factor never get breast cancer, whereas others with no risk factors do. However, risk factor is a must-know for one and all for easy diagnosis and recovery from the disease. Senior medical oncologist Dr Anterpreet S Neki states the various factors that may make a male more susceptible to breast cancer —
- Age – Breast cancer is most commonly diagnosed in men between the ages of 60 and 70, with the average age being 67.
- Family history – About one in five men with breast cancer have a relative who’s had it, too. If you have a close relative, such as a mother or sister, with breast cancer, you have a greater chance of also developing the disease.
- Genetic predisposition – In men, between 5 percent and 10 percent of breast cancers are inherited. Defects in one of the several genes put you at greater risk of developing breast and prostate cancers.
- Radiation exposure – If you received radiation treatments to your chest as a child or young adult, you’re more likely to develop breast cancer later in life.
- Klinefelter syndrome – This condition results from a congenital abnormality of the sex chromosomes, X and Y. A male normally has only one X and one Y chromosome. In Klinefelter’s syndrome, two or more X chromosomes are present in addition to one Y chromosome. As a result, men with this syndrome produce lower levels of certain male hormones — androgens — and more female hormones — estrogens.
- Exposure to estrogen – Treatment of prostate cancer with the help of estrogen related drugs also increases he chances of male breast cancer. However, the risk is small and wouldn’t outweigh the benefit of treating prostate cancer with these drugs.
- Liver disease – If you have liver disease, such as cirrhosis of the liver, your body’s androgen activity may be reduced and its estrogen activity greater. This can also increase the risk of breast cancer.
- Obesity – Obesity may be a risk factor for breast cancer in men, because it increases the number of fat cells in the body, that later convert androgens into estrogen.
- Excessive use of alcohol – If you drink heavy amounts of alcohol, you have a greater risk of breast cancer.
Screening and diagnosis It’s quite imperative to see the doctor if you discover a lump or any of the other warning signs of breast cancer. The prognosis for male breast cancer is the same as for breast cancer in women. Because male breast cancer is so rare, routine screening mammograms (mammography) aren’t recommended for most men. If, however, you have a strong family history of the disease, consider talking to your doctor about developing a breast-screening program. If your doctor suspects breast cancer, to diagnose your condition he or she may conduct a number of tests including breast examination (clinical breast exam), mammograms (mammography) and other tests including breast ultrasound (ultrasonography), nipple discharge examination and estrogen and progesterone receptor tests
Staging tests: Staging tests help determine the size and location of your cancer and whether it has spread. They also help your doctor determine the best treatment for you.
Treatment Owing to people’s ignorance, male breast cancer is often diagnosed at a more advanced stage. This decreases the chances of a healthy, successful recovery. However, if one is aware and conscious, the disease can be cramped before it emerges. Just remember the golden medical rule – Prevention is cure.
FAQs
Why is breast cancer much more common in women? Because women have many more breast cells than men do and because their breast cells are constantly exposed to the growth-promoting effects of female hormones, the chances of breast cancer are 100 times more in women than men.
Do breast sparing procedures help in the case of men? Breast-sparing procedures are often an option for women but are not typically feasible for men. This is because a man’s breast doesn’t contain much tissue underneath the nipple, so removing the cancer usually means removing most of the tissue. Also, removing the breast doesn’t cause a psychological damage to men.
How can the risk of male breast cancer be reduced? To help reduce the risk of breast cancer, maintain a healthy body weight and avoid heavy alcohol use. Early detection also increases the chances of surviving the disease. So if you detect abnormalities, seek prompt care.
Are the cases of male breast cancer increasing in India? The rate of increase in the cases is not alarming in India. However, the cases are certainly increasing in number.
Does tension and anxiety also lead to breast cancer? The mental state always affects the physical state. Though, depression and tension are not the major factors for male breast cancer, they can certainly be one of the many factors in a few cases.
Is male breast cancer curable? The treatment depends on the stage in which it is diagnosed. Age is also a deciding factor. With newer technologies and recent therapies, the chances of recovery have risen relatively high.