Cases of Mammograms in Men: Rising but No Reason to Administer, Mayo Clinic Research Says

Filed in archive Cases , Diagnostics , Studies on December 17, 2006

According to researchers of Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, while many men have breast symptoms (i.e. enlarged or painful breast tissue), majority of them do not need a mammogram, the procedure used to look for the presence of breast cancers.

Breast cancers are very rare in males.

The study's lead author, Stephanie Hines, M.D., of Mayo's Multidisciplinary Breast Clinic and Breast Cancer Program in Jacksonville, Florida, stated:

"Mammography is being performed with increasing frequency in men with breast symptoms, but we found that breast cancer in men can be felt as a firm, discrete mass on a physical exam, or seen as changes in the skin or nipple.

Male breast cancer is exceedingly rare -- fewer than 2,000 men in the United States are diagnosed with the condition annually.

But the problem is that there are no guidelines about the use of mammograms in male patients and few studies have been conducted to find out if they are helpful."

The said study was presented Saturday, Dec. 16, at the 2006 meeting of the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium and suggested that physicians should reconsider ordering mammograms for men.

Especially those who are most often diagnosed with non-cancerous gynecomastia.

Gynecomastia is a common condition which includes breast swelling, a tender mass or painful breast tissue caused by various things: including hormonal imbalance, use of certain medications, organ failure, and alcohol use.

Gynecomastia can be detected in a physical exam and can often be diagnosed solely based on the clinical evaluation and doesn't necessarily lead to male breast cancer.

Read the full report at Science Daily.