Male breast cancer.
Diagnosis and treatment modalities for female breast cancer have developed spectacularly in recent years. Unfortunately, this is not the case for male breast cancer. Because the disease is so rare, controlled clinical trials have almost never been performed and treatment is based on findings in women or small series of men. Similarly, while breast cancer in women is diagnosed at an increasingly early stage, male breast cancer is usually diagnosed late, when the chances of cure are diminished. This article reviews what is currently known about male breast cancer, with an emphasis on areas where evidence-based data are scarce. While it is possible that some recent developments in female breast cancer treatment could be applicable to men, but the way forward is to increase awareness of the disease, and for treatment centers to pool patients for inclusion in randomized clinical trials.
Division of Senology, European Institute of Oncology, Via Ripamonti 435, 20141 Milan, Italy. stefano.zurrida@ieo.it
Stefano
S
Zurrida
Franco
F
Nolè
Bernardo
B
Bonanni
Mauro Giuseppe
MG
Mastropasqua
Paolo
P
Arnone
Oreste
O
Gentilini
Antuono
A
Latronico
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018931:Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics; D018567:Breast Neoplasms, Male / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones; D006177:Gynecomastia / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008408:Mastectomy; D009376:Neoplasms, Hormone-Dependent / Q000188:drug therapy; D009386:Neoplastic Syndromes, Hereditary / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D009857:Oncogenes; D011379:Prognosis; D012307:Risk Factors; D012509:Sarcoma / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D018931:Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones