[Breast cancer in men]

Carcinoma of the breast is relatively uncommon in men. Represents somewhere between 0.9 to 1.5 of all tumors of the breast. Most patients are within the 7th to 8th decade of life. The most common symptoms at the time of presentation are a tumor mass in either breast, ulceration of the nipple or nipple retraction or fixation of the skin. Extension to the axiliar nodes takes place early in the course of the disease. The presence of nipple discharge should be considered expression of carcinoma of the breast unless otherwise proven. The final diagnosis is established by biopsy. The most common form of carcinoma of the breast is the ductal carcinoma. The surgical management takes basically that followed in carcinoma of the breast in the female patient. Also orquiectomy has been used which is equivalent to ovariectomy in woman. In the presence of metastasis both estrogens and androgens have been used. Hypophysectomy and post-op radiation therapy has been used. Most recently chemotherapy has been widely used in those cases with widespread metastasis. However, in spite of all these efforts carcinoma of the breast in the male still carries a very serious prognosis. We present our experience in 16 cases.