Lack of awareness leads to late detection of breast cancer in men

BENGALURU: When Mohan (name changed), 53, noticed a lump in his right breast that was growing over five months, he consulted a doctor who advised a biopsy. Mohan ignored it for a while but went to a doctor again when he noticed redness in the nipple area, itching and pain. He was diagnosed with cancer that had spread to his chest wall and vertebrae. He underwent eight cycles of chemotherapy and is healthy now.

As part of WHO’s

world breast cancer awareness month

in October, oncologists have been talking about the fact that it’s not just women who have breast cancer. Breast cancer in men is often detected at the advanced stages due to lack of awareness and negligence, say doctors. Though it’s women who are at higher risk of breast cancer, the incidence among men is about 1% of all breast cancer.

“Breast cancer is detected later in men as most think it is a disease of women. They assume that lesions are fat and dismiss it,” said Dr Raghavendra Rao M, head, cancer registry at HCG, a cancer care provider.

Dr Somashekhar SP, chairman and head of surgical oncology department at Manipal Hospitals, said: “Due to lack of awareness, 90% of Indian males consult a doctor at stage 3, an advanced stage. So they often have to go through three stages of treatment — chemotherapy, surgery and radiotherapy.”

The causes of breast cancer among men are varied and include a sedentary lifestyle and obesity. Dr M Chandrashekar, senior consultant of surgical oncology at

Apollo Hospitals

, said: “Genetic inheritance of breast cancer genes, other associated disorders resulting in low testosterone levels, obesity, inflammation of one or more testicles, hepatic infectious diseases and exposure to heat and chemicals like benzene, tri and tetra-chloroethylene are the major causes of breast cancer among men.”

Creating awareness through health education, screening camps and clinical examination can lead to early detection. “Awareness about breast cancer in males should be created through various activities conducted routinely by the healthcare community and institutions. Men should also be trained in breast self-examination and signs to look for,” said Dr Rao.

Women are, however, the higher risk group, said Dr Vineet Gupta, senior consultant and head, Medical Onclogy and Hematology Institute of Oncology at Sakra World Hospital. “Compared to incidence of breast cancer among women, breast cancer among men is pretty low,” he said.

Getting regular physical activity, and having a high fibre diet can help prevent cancer, said Dr B S Ajai Kumar, chairman and CEO, Health Care Global Enterprises.

“Lack of awareness on breast cancer among doctors also leads to late detection. In most cases men come at an advanced stage as breast cancer remains undiagnosed by primary physicians and surgeons. They suspect malignancy only when the lesions grow. Greater awareness both among the medical fraternity and patients can go a long way to ensure early detection,” said Dr Rajeev Vijayakumar, consultant medical oncologist, Narayana Health City.

“Inability to procreate is one of the common side effects of breast cancer treatment. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy not only kill cancer cells but also damage sperm. Male cancer patients have the option to freeze semen prior to cancer treatment, so that if infertility occurs the couple can still conceive through fertility treatment,” said Dr

Manish Banker

, medical director,

Nova IVI Fertility

.