Being the month of Movember where I blog about men's health issues, I had to talk about this. In a recent report that appeared in the Khaleej Times, it seems men are are also affected by breast cancer.
October is normally the month where breast cancer awareness is highlighted and we've seen lots of initaiatives including the Burjuman Pink Walkathon (which was this year on 1st November) so fits in nicely with Movember where it should be a walk for men as well.
According to the Khaleej Times report, a 48-year old Emirati man was found to have had a malignant form of breast cancer that went undetected for six years. After several tests, the man had to have a mastectomy.
Dr. Sawsan Al Mahdi, the Secretary General for Friends of Cancer Patients (FoCP) charitable society and head of Pink Caravan told Khaleej Times, "“Although men have significantly less breast tissue, therefore lowering their chances of developing breast cancer, the downside is that breast tumours in men have a higher tendency to spread to nearby areas, such as the skin covering the breast or the muscles under the breast, therefore increasing the risk of the cancer reaching the metastatic phase.”
Early detection remains the best cure and for most men, they should be undergoing an annual medical check-up in any case. The next time you're getting this done, ask your doctor to run a quick ultrasound over your chest (I know my doctor normally does an abdominal scan) and it's better to be safe than sorry.
To learn more about male breast cancer, visit this link on the Virtual Medical Centre website.
Spread the word and let's make sure we care not only for ourselves but our loved ones always.
P.S. I'm supporting Movember to raise awareness for men's health issues. To find out more, please visit my Movember page on my blog. If you'd like to donate to the cause, then please visit the donation page of the #Mustachepreneurs and any contributions will be graciously accepted.
October is normally the month where breast cancer awareness is highlighted and we've seen lots of initaiatives including the Burjuman Pink Walkathon (which was this year on 1st November) so fits in nicely with Movember where it should be a walk for men as well.
According to the Khaleej Times report, a 48-year old Emirati man was found to have had a malignant form of breast cancer that went undetected for six years. After several tests, the man had to have a mastectomy.
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| Image source: http://www.virtualmedicalcentre.com/diseases/male-breast-cancer-male-breast-carcinoma/829 |
Dr. Sawsan Al Mahdi, the Secretary General for Friends of Cancer Patients (FoCP) charitable society and head of Pink Caravan told Khaleej Times, "“Although men have significantly less breast tissue, therefore lowering their chances of developing breast cancer, the downside is that breast tumours in men have a higher tendency to spread to nearby areas, such as the skin covering the breast or the muscles under the breast, therefore increasing the risk of the cancer reaching the metastatic phase.”
Early detection remains the best cure and for most men, they should be undergoing an annual medical check-up in any case. The next time you're getting this done, ask your doctor to run a quick ultrasound over your chest (I know my doctor normally does an abdominal scan) and it's better to be safe than sorry.
To learn more about male breast cancer, visit this link on the Virtual Medical Centre website.
Spread the word and let's make sure we care not only for ourselves but our loved ones always.
P.S. I'm supporting Movember to raise awareness for men's health issues. To find out more, please visit my Movember page on my blog. If you'd like to donate to the cause, then please visit the donation page of the #Mustachepreneurs and any contributions will be graciously accepted.
