Male breast cancer
According to an article in the New England Journal of Medicine, nearly half of all men will experience gynecomastia (the development of male breast tissue) at some point in their lives. Glenn Braunstein, a hormone expert at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles, explains that a hormonal imbalance between oestrogen and testosterone is the root of the cause of male breast development and it is usually caused by changes in hormones at birth, puberty, or as part of ageing.
Men normally produce small amounts of the female hormone oestrogen, but certain conditions result in abnormally high levels of oestrogen in men. The majority of breast cancers in men are oestrogen receptor-positive (meaning that they grow in response to stimulation with oestrogen). Additionally, obesity is associated with elevated oestrogen levels and breast enlargement in men. Like breast cancer in women, cancer of the male breast is the uncontrolled growth of the abnormal cells of this breast tissue.
Although breast cancer is traditionally thought of as a female-related problem, men are increasingly susceptible to the disease. In many ways, the disease appears similarly in both sexes although it is much rarer in males. Research indicates that the disease is more manageable and has higher successful treatable rates than when found in women but Braunstein stresses that men need to consider gynecomastia as they age and go for regular checkups with their doctor. “Many people are unaware that men can develop breast cancer, and neither individual men themselves nor their physicians regularly examine men's breasts. Furthermore, when men discover signs of breast cancer, they tend to delay before seeing a physician,” he adds
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