Neptune Man: Let's Get Aware Of Male Breast Cancer

NEPTUNE TOWNSHIP, NJ — The following letter is from a Patch reader who lives in Neptune Township. He has an important personal story about male breast cancer and he wants people to be more aware of this disease:

Men Get Breast Cancer, Too

Over the last two years, I’ve placed a similar letter to the editor in a physical newspaper. It’s now time to expand to digital. My message is simple: Guys need to get checked, too.

Just like women who may be at risk due to genetics or other health issues, men need to learn the risk factors for breast cancer as well. Factors such as increased age. Memorial Sloan Kettering indicates that men between 60 and 70, like me, are at the greatest risk; with family history, obesity, liver disease, gene and hormonal issues also being risk factors.

This is NOT to take away from the thousands of women who have had to deal with breast cancer or will deal with it in the future. The ladies deserve our support, research and the cure. And I applaud every effort to raise awareness.

But I wonder how many of you guys know that men can be diagnosed with breast cancer as well.

Surprised? I sure was. You see, two and a half years ago I was diagnosed with male breast cancer (MBC) and underwent a full mastectomy because lumpectomies just don’t work with guys. Though small but aggressive, thankfully it was found early during my annual physical. And because it was found early, I was lucky because, with no lymph node involvement, radiation or chemotherapy was not needed. I’m now two and a half years cancer free.

But how many were not so lucky, both guys and gals? After all, breast cancer is treatable if caught early. And while rare, male breast cancer is real. About 2,600 men will be diagnosed with MBC this year and approximately 500 will die of it. Because it’s rare in men, few men think about it, thus the risk of an aggressive tumor spreading too far is high. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, “the survival rates and prognoses for men is not as good as it is for women. Men have a 25 percent higher mortality rate (with breast cancer) than women.”

There are websites that deal specifically with MBC. Don’t be afraid to man up and check them out. Don’t be afraid to speak to your doctor about it as well if you feel you have some of those risk factors I mentioned above.

My mission continues as long as I can, trying to add a little bit of blue to the pink ribbons this October; spreading the word and hoping that at least one guy can be saved by them checking early and often; despite the low awareness of the disease in men.

Guys & Ladies as well? The lesson for today? BE LUCKY like I was. Learn the risk factors to see if this is something you should follow and get your boobs checked by a doctor. And if you have risk factors, learn how to check them yourself on a frequent basis.

Jim Granelli

Neptune, NJ

More on this topic from Memorial Sloan Kettering: Jim Didn’t Know That Men Could Get Breast Cancer — Until He Was Diagnosed