Breast Cancer in Men: Aspects of Familial Aggregation

Abstract

Familial aggregation of breast cancer in males was investigated in a population-based case-control study. Cases were ascertained from 10 Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program registries in the United States between 1983 and 1986. Controls were identified by random-digit dialing and from lists of Medicare recipients. The relative odds of developing breast cancer were similar in men with affected paternal and maternal relatives and in men with affected mothers and sisters. The risk increased with the number of affected relatives. The relative odds of developing breast cancer were greater in men with first-degree relatives who developed their mammary neoplasm before the age of 45 than in men with older first-degree affected relatives; the enhancement of risk in men with an affected sister was greater in those under age 60 than in older men. These results are similar to those observed by others in studies of breast cancer in women.

Genetic Epidemiology of Breast and Ovarian Cancers

“…Across all ages, women with breast cancer are, on average, two to three times more likely to have a family history of the disease in a first-degree relative than comparison women (reviewed by Kelsey (3), Kelsey and Gammon (4), and Eby et al (5)). Similar results are observed for men with breast cancer (6), and slightly higher relative risks (3 to 4) are reported for ovarian cancer (reviewed by Amos and Struewing (7)). …”

Perceptions and Opinions about Male Breast Cancer and Male Breast Self-Examination: A Qualitative Study

“…Klinefelter's syndrome, in which patients carry XXY chromosomes, may be present in 3 -7% of males with breast cancer, giving males with Klinefelter's syndrome a 50-fold greater risk over the general male population (Harnden et al, 1971;Casagrande et al, 1988;Hultborn et al, 1997). Men with a family history of breast cancer in a female relative have 2.5 times the odds of developing breast cancer (Rosenblatt et al, 1991). As in women, exposure to chest wall radiation, such as in patients previously treated with mantle radiation for Hodgkin's disease, increases the risk of subsequent breast cancer (Sasco et al, 1993).…”

Male Breast Cancer

“…Sisters and daughters of MBC patients have a 2-to 3-fold increased risk of developing breast cancer [10]. A family history of breast cancer confers a relative risk of 3.98 [11], and 20% of men with breast cancer have a first-degree relative with the disease. 5-10% of female breast cancers are thought to result from autosomal dominant inheritance, particularly BRCA1 and, less frequently, BRCA2 mutations.…”