Male breast cancer is cancer that develops in the tissue of men’s breasts. Even though breast cancer is most frequently associated with women, it can also affect men.
Male breast cancer can come at any age in a man’s life, but it is most frequently in older men. Early detection of male breast cancer increases the likelihood of successful treatment.
Surgery can help, and it is frequently used as a form of treatment to remove breast tissue. Further chemotherapy and radiation therapy may be suggested depending on your specific circumstances.
Where in men does breast cancer first appear?
Everybody has a modest amount of breast tissue at birth. The ducts which deliver milk to the nipples, fat, and milk-producing glands (lobules) make up breast tissue.
Women usually start growing more breast tissue during adolescence, but men do not. However, despite having little breast tissue at birth, men can still get breast cancer.
Men’s breast cancer can be of the following types:
1) Beginning in the milk ducts is cancer (ductal carcinoma); ductal carcinoma makes up the majority of male breast cancer.
2) Starting in the glands that produce milk (lobular carcinoma), this type is rare in men because they have few breast tissue lobules.
3) Men can also get Paget’s disease of the nipple and inflammatory breast cancer, two less common forms of breast cancer.
Inherited genes that raise the risk of breast cancer
Many Men acquire genes from their parents (mutated) that enhance the risk of developing breast cancer. You are more likely to develop breast and prostate cancers if one or more genes, particularly the BRCA2 gene, are affected by cancer.
Talk to your doctor if there is a history of cancer in your family. Consider genetic testing to determine whether you contain genes that enhance your risk of cancer; your doctor might advise that you talk with a genetic counsellor.
Risks factors of men breast cancer
Male breast cancer is more likely as a result of the following factors:
1) Age
As you become older, your chance of breast cancer rises. Men in their 60s are most frequently diagnosed with male breast cancer.
2) Estrogens
This chronic health issue arises if you use estrogen-related medications, such as those prescribed for hormone therapy for prostate cancer.
3)History of breast cancer in the family
You have a higher risk of getting breast cancer if a member of your immediate family does have breast cancer before.
4) The syndrome of Klinefelter
When a boy is born with more than one copy of the X chromosome, this genetic syndrome takes place. Klinefelter’s syndrome causes abnormal development of the testicles. As a result, men with this syndrome produce lower levels of certain male hormones (androgens) and more female hormones (estrogens).
5)Liver disease
Certain conditions, like liver cirrhosis, can reduce male and female hormones, increasing your risk of breast cancer.
6) Obesity
Obesity is associated with higher levels of estrogen in the body, which increases the risk of cancer in the breast region in men.
7) Testicle disease or surgery
Having inflamed testicles (orchitis) or surgery to remove a testicle (orchiectomy) can increase your risk of getting male breast cancer.
