Myth Buster: Men and Breast Cancer

MYTH: Men can’t get breast cancer.

FACTS: Although breast cancer is about 100 times less common among men than women, it strikes about one in every 1,000 males in the United States.  Almost 2,000 new cases will be diagnosed in 2008, the American Cancer Society estimates, and about 450 men will die from it.

Breast tissue in men is made up mainly of ducts, and it is duct cells that can become malignant. Risk factors for this kind of cancer in men are age (it occurs most often in men ages 60 to 70), a family history of breast cancer, high levels of estrogen and exposure to radiation.

Because most men don’t realize they can develop this kind of malignancy, they tend to ignore symptoms, such as lumps, and usually don’t check them out with a doctor until the cancer reaches an advanced stage. The prognosis is about the same as for women, with the likely survival rate for both sexes depending on the stage of the cancer at the time it is diagnosed.

Treatment is also the same: surgery, chemotherapy, hormone therapy and radiation, although new forms of treatment are in the works.