Male breast cancer is a rare cancer that begins as a growth of cells in the breast tissue of men.
Breast cancer is typically thought of as a condition that happens in women. But everyone is born with some breast tissue. So anyone can get breast cancer.
Male breast cancer is rare. It happens most often in older men, though it can occur at any age.
Treatment for male breast cancer typically involves surgery to remove the breast tissue. Other treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy, may be recommended as well.
Signs and symptoms of male breast cancer can include:
Make an appointment with a doctor or other health care professional if you have symptoms that worry you.
It's not clear what causes male breast cancer.
Male breast cancer starts when cells in the breast tissue develop changes in their DNA. A cell's DNA holds the instructions that tell the cell what to do. In healthy cells, the DNA gives instructions to grow and multiply at a set rate. The instructions tell the cells to die at a set time.
In cancer cells, the DNA changes give different instructions. The changes tell the cancer cells to make many more cells quickly. Cancer cells can keep living when healthy cells would die. This causes too many cells.
The cancer cells might form a mass called a tumor. The tumor can grow to invade and destroy healthy body tissue. In time, cancer cells can break away and spread to other parts of the body. When cancer spreads, it's called metastatic cancer.
Everyone is born with a small amount of breast tissue. Breast tissue consists of milk-producing glands, ducts that carry milk to the nipples and fat.
During puberty, people assigned female at birth typically begin growing more breast tissue. People assigned male at birth generally do not grow more breast tissue. But because everyone is born with a small amount of breast tissue, breast cancer can develop in anyone.
Types of male breast cancer include:
Factors that increase the risk of male breast cancer include:
Tests and procedures to diagnose male breast cancer might include:
Removing a sample of breast cells for testing, called a biopsy. To determine whether you have cancer, you might have a procedure to remove a sample of cells for testing in a lab. This procedure is called a biopsy. To get the sample, a health care professional puts a needle through the skin on your chest. The health professional guides the needle using a mammogram or another imaging test.
In the lab, specialists examine the cells under a microscope to see if they're cancer. Other tests can tell whether your cancer cells have hormone receptors or certain DNA changes. The test results help your health care team create a treatment plan.
There might be other tests and procedures depending on your situation.
After confirming a diagnosis of breast cancer, your health care team works to find the extent of your cancer. This is called the cancer's stage. Your health care team uses your cancer's stage to understand your prognosis and to make a treatment plan.
Male breast cancer staging often involves imaging tests. The images can tell your health care team about your cancer's size and whether it has spread. Tests may include:
Results from lab tests on the cancer cells also help determine the cancer's stage. Tests might show the cancer's grade. This tells your health care team how quickly the cancer is growing. Your care team also considers whether your cancer cells have receptors. Tests can look for receptors for estrogen, progesterone and HER2.
Results from these tests are used to assign your cancer a stage. Breast cancer stages range from 0 to 4. Stage 0 means the cancer is very small. At this stage, the cancer is inside the milk ducts. It hasn't broken out into the breast tissue. Doctors sometimes call this noninvasive cancer.
As the cancer grows and invades the breast tissue, the stages get higher. Stage 4 breast cancer means the cancer has spread to other areas of the body.
Male breast cancer treatment usually starts with surgery. Other common treatments include chemotherapy, hormone therapy and radiation therapy. To create a treatment plan, your health care team looks at your cancer's stage, your overall health and what you prefer.
The goal of surgery is to remove the cancer and some of the healthy tissue around it. Operations used to treat male breast cancer include:
Removing a few lymph nodes for testing, called a sentinel lymph node biopsy. The surgeon removes the lymph nodes most likely to be the first place your cancer cells would spread. Those few lymph nodes, called sentinel nodes, are sent to a lab for testing.
If there are no cancer cells, there is a good chance that your breast cancer hasn't spread past your breast tissue. If cancer is found, more lymph nodes are removed for testing.
Radiation therapy uses powerful energy beams to kill cancer cells. The energy can come from X-rays, protons or other sources. During radiation therapy, you lie on a table while a machine moves around you. The machine directs radiation to precise points on your body.
In male breast cancer, radiation therapy may be used after surgery to kill any cancer cells that might be left behind. The radiation is often aimed at the chest and armpit.
Most male breast cancers have cells that rely on hormones to grow, called hormone sensitive. If your cancer is hormone sensitive, hormone therapy might be an option. Hormone therapy can keep cancer from coming back after surgery. If the cancer spreads to other parts of the body, hormone therapy may help slow its growth.
Hormone therapy for male breast cancer often involves the medicine tamoxifen. Other hormone therapy medicines might be an option if you can't take tamoxifen.
Chemotherapy uses strong medicines to kill cancer cells. These medicines are often given through a vein. Some chemotherapy medicines are available in pill form.
Chemotherapy might be used after surgery to kill any cancer cells that might be left in the body. Chemotherapy also may be an option for treating cancer that spreads to other parts of the body.
Targeted therapy uses medicines that attack specific chemicals in the cancer cells. By blocking these chemicals, targeted treatments can cause cancer cells to die. Targeted therapy might be used after surgery to kill any cancer cells that might be left in the body. It also might be an option if the cancer spreads to other parts of the body.
Receiving a cancer diagnosis can be shocking. With time, you'll find ways to cope with the stress and challenges of cancer and cancer treatment. Until then, you might find it helpful to consider:
Start by seeing your doctor or another health care professional if you notice any symptoms that worry you. You might be referred to a doctor who specializes in treating cancer, called an oncologist.
Here's some information to help you get ready for your appointment.
Be aware of any pre-appointment restrictions, such as not eating for a time before your appointment. Ask a relative or friend to go with you to help you remember the information you get.
Make a list of:
Basic questions about male breast cancer might include:
Be sure to ask all the questions you have about male breast cancer.
Be ready to answer questions such as:
