Male Breast Cancer
What Is Male Breast Cancer?

Breast cancer is a malignant tumor which affects the cells from the breast. Although it is more common in women, it occasionally affects men too.

A lot of people do not know that men also have breast tissue and can get breast cancer. Until they reach puberty, both boys and girls only have little breast tissue with a few ducts underneath the nipple and the area surrounding it.

When a girl reaches puberty, her ovaries start producing female hormones which cause the ducts to grow, lobules to form at their ends and the fatty tissue to develop. In contrast, male hormones prevent breast tissue from growing further. Men’s breasts contain ducts too, but just a few or no lobules.

The duct cells from a man’s breast can also be affected by cancer, just like any other cells of the body. Women are more exposed to breast cancer because they have more breast cells which are constantly subject to a growing process. However, male breast cancer is a common disease too.

How Does Male Breast Cancer Develops?

Many kinds of breast conditions can affect both women and men. Most of them are benign. They do not spread to other tissues and are not dangerous. However, some tumors are malignant and can even cause death. Some benign tumors, such as fibroadenomas an papillomas, are very common in women but very unlikely to affect men.

Cancer cells can infiltrate in the lymphatic system and spread further to lymph nodes. Most lymphatic vessels from the breast connect to underarm lymph nodes. When breast cancer gets to these nodes, it may keep growing and lead to a swelling of the underarm area.

If the cancer has spread to underarm lymph nodes, it is more likely to have reached other areas of the body too. In both female and male breast cancer it is essential to check for cancer cells in the underarm lymph nodes before choosing a treatment.

Benign Breast Conditions

The most common breast condition in men different from male breast cancer is gynecomastia. It is not a tumor, but more like an increase in the amount of breast tissue. Gynecomastia is common among teenagers as well as in older man as a result of hormonal changes.

On occasion, gynecomastia is a result of a disease or tumor that has affected certain endocrine glands, leading to an increase in the production of estrogen. Usually, men’s glands do not produce enough estrogen to male the breast tissue grow. Affections of the liver or obesity are some of the most frequent causes of an increased estrogen level in men.

A large number of prescribed medicines, such as some of those used to treat ulcers, high blood pressure or heart failure, can also lead to gynecomastia. Men with this breast condition should ask their doctor if any of the drugs they are taking might cause gynecomastia.