Carcinomas of the male breast constitutes only 1% of all breast cancer and less than 1.5% of all malignant tumors in men. The low incidence of this disease prevents therapeutic questions from being addressed in prospective randomized trials. Our aim was to cover the characteristics of the etiology, presentation and treatment of male breast cancer; and therefore provide an overview of knowledge in this area.

We retrospectively analyzed 16 male breast cancer patients, who had been treated between 1983 and 1992 at the Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, The Catholic university of Korea.

The peak age of incidence was in the 7th and 8th decades. The most common symptom was a palpable mass in the breast (75.1%) and the duration of symptom varied between 3 days and 10 years. According to the TNM staging system, there were 18.8%, 31.3%, 18.8%, 12.5%, 6.3%, at stages O, I,II,III and IV, respectively, and 12.5% with an unknown stage. A modified radical mastectomy was performed in 11 patients (68.8%) and postoperative adjuvant therapy in 12 patients (75.1%). The mean duration of following up was 41.2 months, during which time 2 patients were lost.

Sixteen male breast cancer patients were encountered and men with breast cancer were observed to be older, have a longer duration of symptom and more likely to have a familial tendency. However, our review revealed that male breast cancer was not as far advanced and had more chance of cure than initially thought. Therefore, the early detection and aggressive treatment of breast cancer are important for improving the survival.