Outline

Posted: October 17th, 2013

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Outline

The speech begins by giving some statistics concerning breast cancer in men. It compares those statistics to the statistics of breast cancer in women. The speech proceeds to describe the incidence of breast cancer in men. It notes how people are ignorant concerning the condition, and how this affects diagnosis and treatment. The next section involves listing the various types of breast cancer common in men, and the type of symptoms that men get. It then lists some of the methods used in diagnosing the condition. The next section identifies the risk factors, which might increase the chances of men developing breast cancer.

Breast Cancer in Men

Breast cancer was only thought to be an ailment that affected women. It was a shocking discovery that this disease also affects the male gender. According to breastcancer.org, more than two thousand men were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011. This is less than 1% of the breast cancer cases reported in the country. Breast cancer is commonly associated with women, with more than two hundred thousand cases of breast cancer in women projected this year (Pendick 3). Although men do not have breasts, they do have nonfunctioning breast tissue, and this exposes them to the rare chance of developing cancer in the breasts.

Many people are ignorant of breast cancer in men because of its rarity. Because of this, men do not realize that they are suffering from this type of cancer when they develop the symptoms. They do not know what to look for, and so they end up getting treatment when the cancer has already progressed. To worsen the situation, many men do not go for medical checkups, and this lessens their chance of cancer diagnosis. Dr. Mehra Golshan of Harvard Medical School observes that the survival rate for men with breast cancer tends to be lower than that of women, because of the late diagnosis (Pendick 2). Development and biology of the male breast cancer is similar to the postmenopausal breast cancer among women (Anderson et al., 232-239).

According to the National Cancer Institute, the common types of breast cancer found in men include infiltrating ductal carcinoma, ductal carcinoma in situ, inflammatory breast cancer, and Paget disease of the nipple. Some of the symptoms in male breast cancer include a lump that can be felt, located under the nipple, skin differences on the chest or nipples, fluid discharge from the nipple, and skin retraction on the breast section (Pendick 5). There are several tests used to diagnose breast cancer in men. These include physical exams, clinical breast exam, ultrasounds, magnetic resonance imaging, blood chemistry studies, and biopsies (National Cancer Institute). Dirbas and Conner (546) note that the lack of research in male breast cancer, has led to physicians using the same treatment methods used in postmenopausal women with breast cancer.

Some risk factors for developing breast cancer are common in both men and women (Anderson et al., 232-239). Age is a common risk factor for male breast cancer. Although men can develop breast cancer at any age, men who are between the ages of sixty and seventy have higher chances of developing breast cancer. Men who are in contact exposure to radiation increase their chances of developing breast cancer. In addition, having a family history of breast cancer, high estrogen levels, and genetic mutations are all risk factors of male breast cancer. Although estrogen is a female hormone, some types of diseases such as cirrhosis and Klinefelter syndrome increase the estrogen levels in the body. The presence of these risk factors does not necessarily mean that a man will develop breast cancer (National Cancer Institute). Other risk factors include diet and obesity. Some types of foods increase the chance of developing cancer, and obesity is a risk factor (Anderson et al., 232-239).

Works Cited

Anderson, F. William et al. “Male Breast Cancer: A Population-Based Comparison with Female Breast Cancer.” American Society of Clinical Oncology 28.2 (2009): 232-239. Print

Breastcancer.org. Male Breast Cancer. March 2012. Web. 28 September 2012.

Dirbas, Frederick and Carol, Scott-Conner. Breast Surgical Techniques and Interdisciplinary Management. New York, NY: Springer, 2011. Print

National Cancer Institute. Male Breast Cancer Treatment: General Information about Male Breast Cancer. Sep. 2012. Web. 28 September 2012.

Pendick, Daniel. Breast Cancer in Men: Uncommon, but catching it Early is Vital. Harvard Health Publications. May 2012. Web. 28 September 2012.