Breast Cancer Awareness for Men
Breast cancer awareness month is often focused upon women, but 1% of breast cancer cases actually do occur in men. It’s a bit of a sensitive topic for many men, but it’s important to have an understanding of the risk factors as men fail to recognize breast cancer, resulting in medical attention only being sought much later in the progression of the disease, meaning, that the results can be grave. Here are the risk factors of breast cancer in men; if you fall into any of these categories, talk to your doctor and learn about breast cancer screening.
1. Age – senior men aged 60 to 70 are most often diagnosed with breast cancer
2. Family history – 20% of men with breast cancer have a history of breast cancer in their family, either in other male relatives or women
3. Liver disease – men who have liver disease often have lower levels of androgens and higher levels of estrogen that can increase the chance of breast cancer
4. Estrogen treatmen – estrogen treatment can feed breast cancer, and therefore puts men at a higher risk
5. BRCA2 gene mutations – it’s a gene that can pass from generation to generation that increases the likelihood of breast cancer. In women it’s the BRCA1 gene that carries breast cancer
6. Klinefelter’s syndrome – men with this syndrome have two C chromosomes in addition to one Y chromosome (men should have one X; the female gene and one Y)
Home Instead Senior Care in Rhode Island provides non medical home care services for seniors and the elderly who choose to live at home instead. Please call us for more information on our in-home care services at 401-667-2923.
