News | May 12, 2015

International study suggests causal connection, but exact mechanism for cancer growth remains unknown

men, breast cancer, high estrogen levels, Cancer Research UK

May 12, 2015 — Men with naturally high levels of estrogen may have a greater risk of developing breast cancer, according to research by an international collaboration including Cancer Research UK. The study was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

This is the first time a link between estrogen levels in the blood and male breast cancer has been identified, despite the hormone’s connection to breast, womb and ovarian cancers in women.

Men with the highest levels of estrogen were two and a half times more likely to develop breast cancer than men with the lowest levels of the hormone.

Male breast cancer is very rare, with one man in every 100,000 diagnosed with breast cancer each year in the U.K. Around 350 male cases are diagnosed each year in the U.K. compared with nearly 50,000 cases of breast cancer in women.

The research at the National Cancer Institute in the United States was part of an international collaboration between Cancer Research UK, the National Cancer Institute and others.

The aim was to study a large international pool of men with breast cancer. The research compared estrogen levels in 101 men who went on to develop breast cancer with 217 healthy men.

Mark Cross, 46, a police officer from Cambridgeshire, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009. He had a mastectomy and then follow-up treatment of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. His treatment ended in September 2010. He said: "The police sometimes get a bit of a reputation for being macho but I had great support from everyone within the Metropolitan police service. Not many people know that men get breast cancer too and it was a complete surprise to be diagnosed. My advice to all men is if you develop a lump on your chest — or anywhere else on your body — get it checked by your doctor as soon as possible. I hope my experience will raise awareness for other men."

Study author Prof. Tim Key, Cancer Research UK's hormone and nutrition expert at the University of Oxford, said: "We've shown for the first time that just like some forms of the cancer in women, estrogen has a big role to play in male breast cancer. So now the challenge is to find out exactly what this hormone is doing to trigger this rare form of the disease in men, and why some men have higher levels of estrogen in their blood. Our discovery is a crucial step forward in understanding the factors behind male breast cancer."

The symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of male breast cancer are very similar to breast cancer in women. The main risk of developing the disease in men is age, and almost eight in 10 cases are diagnosed in those aged 60 and older.

Julie Sharp, M.D., head of health information at Cancer Research UK, said: "Breast cancer in men isn't discussed very often, so a diagnosis can be a big shock for the small group of men who develop the disease.

"Some of the estrogen variation in men will simply be natural, but for others there may be a link to being overweight. Fat cells in the body are thought to drive up the body's level of this hormone in men and women, so this is another good reason to try and keep a healthy weight.

"This early research is crucial in understanding why these men get breast cancer - so that one day we can treat it more effectively."

For more information: www.cancerresearchuk.org


Related Content

News | Radiation Oncology

May 22, 2023 — Physicians and scientists from the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center will discuss the latest ...

Time May 22, 2023
arrow
News | Mammography

May 22, 2023 — Incorrect advice by an AI-based decision support system could seriously impair the performance of ...

Time May 22, 2023
arrow
News | Breast Imaging

May 16, 2023 — DenseBreast-info.org has issued a statement which states that the USPSTF Guideline should not apply to ...

Time May 16, 2023
arrow
News | Breast Imaging

May 15, 2023 — RSNA updated its Statement on Screening for Breast Cancer, recognizing new recommendations from the ...

Time May 15, 2023
arrow
News | Breast Imaging

May 12, 2023 — The new United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) Breast Cancer Screening Recommendations are ...

Time May 12, 2023
arrow
News | Breast Imaging

May 11, 2023 — According to an accepted manuscript published in ARRS’ own American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR) ...

Time May 11, 2023
arrow
News | Mammography

May 11, 2023 — The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) has announced the results of the RSNA Screening ...

Time May 11, 2023
arrow
News | Breast Imaging

May 10, 2023 — Hologic has issued a statement in reaction to the proposed USPSTF guidelines. As a leader in women’s ...

Time May 10, 2023
arrow
Feature | Breast Imaging

May 9, 2023 — The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (Task Force) today posted a draft recommendation statement on ...

Time May 09, 2023
arrow
News | Artificial Intelligence

May 8, 2023 — Artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) technologies are constantly finding new applications ...

Time May 08, 2023
arrow
Subscribe Now