Study: Breast Cancer More Advanced When Detected in Men

Breast cancer in men is usually detected when the tumors are bigger, have spread and may be more aggressive than tumors found in women, according to researchers who conducted the largest study ever of male breast cancer.

Researchers from the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, presenting their findings at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, suggested that men should be more alert to the possibility of being affected by the disease.

"Male breast cancer is rare, accounting for only about one percent of all breast cancer, or about 1,600 new cases in the United States in 2002, " but men should be alert to the possibility that the disease could affect them," said Dr. Sharon Giordano, assistant professor in the Department of Breast Medical Oncology.

But she found it "ironic that tumors in men are easier to feel than they are in women, yet the disease is being discovered at a later stage in men than in women."

One reason for a late diagnosis may be attributed to a benign condition called gynecomastia, or atypical growth of breast tissue common in adolescent boys, which Giordano said may lead men to think that "new growth of breast tissue is just another occurrence of this condition."

In their study, the researchers analyzed information from a National Cancer Institute database called SEER (Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results) on 2,524 cases of male breast cancer and 380,856 cases of female breast cancer reported between 1973 to 1998.

Compared to female patients, the investigators found that male patients were significantly older when diagnosed, more likely to have later stage disease, had more spread of the cancer to their lymph nodes, and were more likely to have ductal and papillary cancers.

Yet despite these differences, five-year, 10-year and median survival were not different between men and women, the researchers reported.

Other Sources: M.D. Anderson Cancer Center