PURPOSE: To investigate clinicopathological characteristics and outcomes of male breast cancer (MBC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the data of 20 MBC patients in comparison with female ductal carcinoma treated at Yonsei University Severance Hospital from July 1985 to May 2007. Clinicopathological features, treatment patterns, and survival were investigated. RESULTS: MBC consists of 0.38% of all breast cancers. The median age was 56 years. The median symptom duration was 10 months. The median tumor size was 1.7cm, 27.8% showed node metastasis, and 71.4% were estrogen receptor positive. All 20 cancers were arisen from ductal cells. No lobular carcinoma was found. The incidence of stages 0, I, II, and III in patients were 2, 10, 4, and 3, respectively. All patients underwent mastectomy. One with invasive cancer did not receive axillary node dissection and stage was not exactly evaluated. Adjuvant treatments were determined by pathologic parameters and stage. Clinicopathological parameters and survival rates of MBC were comparable to those of female ductal carcinoma. CONCLUSION: The onset age of MBC was 10 years older and symptom duration was longer than in female patients. No difference in outcomes between MBC and female ductal carcinoma suggests that the biology of MBC is not different from that of females. Therefore, education, an appropriate system for early detection, and adequate treatment are necessary for improving outcomes.
Adult ; Aged ; Breast Neoplasms/mortality/pathology/therapy ; Breast Neoplasms, Male/mortality/*pathology/therapy ; Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast/mortality/pathology/therapy ; Disease-Free Survival ; Female ; Humans ; Korea/epidemiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate ; Young Adult

BACKGROUNDIt is not clear if there is a difference in prognosis between male breast cancer (MBC) and female breast cancer (FBC) patients. The aim of this study was to compare the prognosis of MBC and FBC patients in China and the prognosis of MBC and their corresponding postmenopausal FBC patients.

METHODSThirty-five MBC patients who were treated at the Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center between 1969 and 2004 were enrolled in the study. Seventy FBC patients who were matched with the MBC patients for TNM stage, year of diagnosis, and age at diagnosis were simultaneously enrolled in the study. A second group comprising 18 MBC patients and their corresponding 36 matched postmenopausal FBC patients were also enrolled. The whole group and the postmenopausal groups were compared for five- and ten-year survivals.

RESULTSAll the factors that could potentially affect prognosis were comparable among the groups except more FBC than MBC patients underwent endocrine therapy and a modified radical mastectomy. The 5- and 10-year survivals in the whole group were 81.6% and 60.3% for men and 90.7% and 73.5% for women (P = 0.02). The 5- and 10-year survival in the postmenopausal group was 82.5% and 100% for men and 66.0% and 85.9% for women (P = 0.159).

CONCLUSIONSChinese FBC patients had a better prognosis than Chinese MBC patients. However, MBC patients and their corresponding postmenopausal FBC patients had a similar prognosis.

Adult ; Aged ; Breast Neoplasms ; mortality ; pathology ; therapy ; Breast Neoplasms, Male ; mortality ; pathology ; therapy ; China ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Receptor, ErbB-2 ; analysis ; Receptors, Estrogen ; analysis ; Receptors, Progesterone ; analysis ; Sex Characteristics ; Survival Rate

This article provides an overview of metastases to jaws (MJ), mainly concerning the differences between American and Chinese patients, and exploring the relationship between the primary tumors' prevalence (PTP) and constituent ratio of MJ. Information concerning of 399 MJ cases in 215 papers, including one new case in our hospital, was subjected to statistic analysis. The main clinical features of MJ, such as constituent ratio of PTP and that of MJ, metastatic sites, treatments, and prognosis were summarized. Breast, lung, kidney, prostate and thyroid (in descending order) were the leading primary sites of MJ. Furthermore, the constituent ratio of MJ was found to be correlated with that of PTP in all subjects including American and Chinese subjects in our study. As to metastatic sites in the mandible, a specific "M" shaped pattern appeared regardless of the tumor type or constituent ratios of MJ were in all subjects. Almost all subjects received traditionally palliative treatments, and the prognosis was quite poor. The PTP had a significant impact on the constituent ratio of MJ. However, it was the properties of the microenvironment rather than characteristics or constituent ratios of tumor cells, that decided the metastatic sites in various tumor subjects.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Breast Neoplasms ; pathology ; Chi-Square Distribution ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Jaw Neoplasms ; mortality ; secondary ; therapy ; Kidney Neoplasms ; pathology ; Liver Neoplasms ; pathology ; Lung Neoplasms ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; physiopathology ; Palliative Care ; Prognosis ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; pathology ; Statistics, Nonparametric ; Survival Analysis ; Thyroid Neoplasms ; pathology ; Young Adult