Males typically older at diagnosis, often have larger tumors,experts find. By Kathleen Doheny HealthDay Reporter FRIDAY, May 4 (HealthDay News) -- Breast cancer in men is much lesscommon than it is in women, but it may be more deadly, new researchsuggests. "Men with breast cancer don't do as well as women with breastcancer, and there are opportunities to improve that," said studyauthor Dr. Jon Greif, a breast surgeon in San Francisco.
"They wereless likely to get the standard treatments that women get." Survival rates for men with breast cancer, overall, are lower thanthose for women, at least when it is diagnosed in the early stages,Greif found. The cancers differ in other respects too. Greif was scheduled to present his findings Friday at the AmericanSociety of Breast Surgeons annual meeting in Phoenix. Greif and his team warn, however, that some of the differences theyfound may not bear out in clinical practice. A big limitation to the research: The database they drew from keepstrack of which breast cancer patients die, but not what they diedfrom.
So it is impossible to tell if they died from their cancer orsomething else, he explained. Although many men may not be aware that they can get breast cancer,nearly 2,200 new cases of male breast cancer are expected thisyear, according to the American Cancer Society. The societyestimates 410 men will die of breast cancer in 2012 in the UnitedStates. Greif compared about 13,000 men with breast cancer, identified fromthe National Cancer Data Base, to more than 1.4 million women withbreast cancer.
The data covered 1998 to 2007. The investigators evaluated cancer characteristics and survivalrates, taking into account age, ethnicity and other factors. Men with breast cancer were more likely to be black than women withbreast cancer (11.7 percent versus 9.9 percent) and less likely tobe Hispanic (3.6 percent versus 4.5 percent), the researchersfound. In addition, men were older at diagnosis -- 63, on average,compared to 59 for women.
Men's tumors were larger when diagnosed; they were more likely tohave later-stage tumors, involvement of lymph nodes, spreading toother parts of the body and other differences. Men with breast cancer were less likely to get a partial mastectomyand to receive radiation, the study found. Greif also found that women's overall five-year survival rate was83 percent, but men's was 74 percent. That was looking at allbreast cancers, whatever the stage.
When Greif's team looked at survival stage by stage, women withearly stage cancer had better survival rates than men with earlystage disease. The gap closed when men and women had more advanceddisease. "Women are encouraged to get breast exams [and] mammograms," Greifsaid. That is why their cancers are often diagnosed earlier, whenthe tumors are smaller, he said. More awareness of male breastcancer is crucial.
The study is valuable in pointing out gender differences, even withits limitations, said Dr. Susan Boolbol, chief of the division ofbreast surgery at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City. "Over the years, it was thought that, stage for stage, women andmen had equal outcomes," Boolbol said. The new research findsotherwise, and includes larger numbers of men with breast cancerthan many previous studies did, she noted. Lack of information on cause of death is a major limitation of thefinding, she said.
Even so, "this is a very interesting study, and... it will open the door to more research being done in malebreast cancer." The study may also raise awareness that men can indeed developbreast cancer, Boolbol said. Men should be aware of potential symptoms of breast cancer, theAmerican Cancer Society suggests. Among them: a lump or swelling,dimpling or puckering, a turning inward of the nipple, scaling ofthe nipple or breast skin, redness of the nipple or skin of thebreast, and nipple discharge.
Findings presented at medical meetings are typically consideredpreliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal. More information To learn more about breast cancer in men, visit the American Cancer Society . SOURCES: May 4, 2012, news conference with: Jon Greif, D.O.,general surgeon, San Francisco; Susan K. Boolbol, M.D., chief,division of breast surgery, Beth Israel Medical Center, New YorkCity; May 4, 2012, presentation, American Society of BreastSurgeons annual meeting, Phoenix Copyright © 2012 HealthDay . All rights reserved. I am a professional writer from Luggage, Bags & Cases, which contains a great deal of information about hanging cosmetic bags , neoprene notebook case, welcome to visit!
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