Breast Cancer in Men

What is breast cancer?

Breast cancer is a growth of abnormal cells in the breast. Men have a very small amount of breast tissue right under the nipple. This breast tissue can develop cancer, just like women's breasts can become cancerous. However, breast cancer in men is rare. There are about 1,000 cases per year in the US. It usually affects men in their 60s.

How does it occur?

It is not really known why some men get breast cancer. It may be related to hormone levels. It may also be related to occupations that expose men to high temperatures, such as factories and mills with high-heat furnaces. There may be a genetic (inherited) factor in some families, but this is not well understood yet.

What are the symptoms?

Male breast cancer symptoms may include:

breast lump
discharge from the nipple
change in nipple shape or appearance
scaly rash on the nipple.

See your health care provider right away if you have any of these symptoms.

How is it diagnosed?

If you have discharge from a nipple, some of the discharge can be placed on a microscope slide and examined for cancer cells. If you have a breast lump or nipple rash, the tissue must be biopsied. A needle biopsy or surgical biopsy may be done.

When you have a needle biopsy, you are given a local anesthetic to numb the area of the breast being tested. Then your health care provider inserts a needle into the breast lump and withdraws fluid or tissue from the lump. If fluid fills the needle, the lump is probably a cyst and not cancer. Removing the fluid also makes fluid-filled lumps go away. Tissue withdrawn by the needle will be examined in the lab.

If you have a surgical biopsy, you will have an anesthetic. The surgeon will make a cut in the skin and remove some or all of the lump. The tissue from the lump will be examined under a microscope. You may also have lymph nodes removed from your armpit to see if cancer has spread beyond the breast.

How is it treated?

Surgery is the standard treatment. This usually involves removing the nipple, all breast tissue, and the nearby lymph nodes. How much needs to be removed depends on how far the tumor appears to have spread. After surgery it is common to have treatment with anticancer drugs (chemotherapy) or radiation therapy.

How can I take care of myself?

Follow your health care provider's instructions for recovering from surgery.
Keep yourself as healthy as possible by eating healthy foods (fruits, vegetables and whole grains), exercising according to your provider's advice, and not smoking.
Ask your provider if or when you may drink alcohol.
When you are ready, a support group for men surviving cancer is a good way to understand your own emotions as well as those of your family members. This is a good way to stay mentally healthy and to keep good family communication going during and after treatment.

What can I do to prevent breast cancer?

We do not know how to prevent breast cancer in men.

Disclaimer: This content is reviewed periodically and is subject to change as new health information becomes available. The information provided is intended to be informative and educational and is not a replacement for professional medical evaluation, advice, diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional.

HIA File CNC3507F.HTM Release 9.0/2006