Breast cancer in men

When it comes to breast cancer, everyone thinks that it is a disease that only women have. In fact, although the incidence of breast cancer is indeed higher in women, it does not mean that men will not get breast cancer. Many men will also suffer from breast cancer due to some special reasons. Of course, this disease is also very harmful to male patients. Below, I will introduce to you the treatment methods of male breast cancer!

1. Surgical treatment

(1) Modified radical mastectomy is suitable for patients whose pectoral muscles have not been invaded.

(2) For patients with invasion of the pectoral muscles, radical mastectomy or extended radical mastectomy is the main surgical method. Because tumors located in the areola area are very likely to metastasize to the internal mammary area and axillary lymph nodes; therefore, if there is no radiotherapy equipment or there are contraindications to radiotherapy, extended radical mastectomy has a greater indication. If the above equipment is available, radical mastectomy can be considered, followed by additional radiotherapy, but modified radical mastectomy should be selected with caution; it is even more inappropriate to choose a procedure less than simple mastectomy.

2. Radiation therapy

Male breast cancer has a rich lymphatic network under the nipple and areola, so it can metastasize to the lymph nodes in the internal mammary area or axilla even when the tumor is small. Therefore, it is necessary to perform radiotherapy to the internal mammary area, axilla, supraclavicular region, and chest wall after surgery. Radiotherapy can be divided into postoperative radiotherapy, preoperative radiotherapy, and radiotherapy for tumor recurrence.

3. Chemotherapy

Preoperative chemotherapy for male breast cancer and postoperative chemotherapy for patients with positive lymph node metastasis and ER negativity are expected to improve survival rate. According to cytological theory, postoperative chemotherapy should be started early, generally no more than 1 month after surgery, and chemotherapy should be continued within 1 year after surgery if conditions permit.

4. Endocrine therapy

It is mainly used for male breast cancer patients with advanced or recurrent disease.

5. Prognosis

Male breast cancer patients are older, have a long course of disease, and have a poor prognosis. However, if the disease is discovered early and treated in time, the prognosis is similar to that of women. The factors that affect the prognosis of male breast cancer are mainly the pathological type, stage, treatment method, and the presence or absence of lymph node metastasis at the time of diagnosis. Most reports believe that the overall 5-year survival rate after treatment is slightly lower for men than for women.