Print
E-mail
Comment
Rate
Changing the face of cancer
 |
| Eileen Thomas, assistant professor at the University of Colorado Denver College of Nursing at Anschutz Medical Campus, poses Oct. 17 outside the Education 2 building on the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora. (Heather A. Longway/The Aurora Sentinel) |
College of Nursing tackling a seldom discussed form of male breast cancer
By ADAM GOLDSTEIN
The Aurora Sentinel
AURORA | It was an unsettling discovery for Ricky Mott, one that did not spur immediate action.
“I was really hesitant in the beginning about even going to see the doctor, about the lump that I found in my own breast,” said Mott, the assistant director of admissions at the University of Colorado Denver College of Nursing in Aurora. “I waited a month or so before I really did anything once I discovered (it).”
Part of Mott’s reticence stemmed from the fact that he saw breast cancer as an affliction primarily associated with women, and while he had two sisters and an aunt who had the disease, the prospect remained difficult to process.
“I had this sort of theory, even though I felt that I was well-educated about breast cancer, that it was primarily a feminine disease,” Mott said. “To say that I had breast cancer, I didn’t think negatively that it was feminine, it just made me feel less of a person, because men didn’t get it. Even if they did, I didn’t know to what extent.”
According to Eileen Thomas, assistant professor at the UCD College of Nursing, it’s a side of the disease that remains largely unspoken, not only in the general population, but in the medical community as well. Thomas has launched a study designed to fill this common gap in knowledge and awareness concerning the breast cancer risk for men, an effort that poses general questions about the malady to a specific number of test subjects.
“I’m finding that even the male physicians don’t tend to speak out ... (I want) to promote awareness, not only among the general community, but among health care providers also, or at least let them know that men do want to know,” said Eileen Thomas, assistant professor at the UCD College of Nursing. “I’m hoping to increase awareness not only in the community but among health care professionals, too.”
According to Thomas, the number of men who will be impacted by breast cancer in 2008 alone is significant enough to rethink how the topic is treated in the medical community and the general population.
An estimated 2,000 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and about 450 will die from the disease in the U.S. this year. Comparatively, an estimated 1.3 million women will be diagnosed with breast cancer
this year.
What that means, according to Thomas’ research, that about 20 percent of the men diagnosed with the disease have a female relative with breast cancer, which translates to about 260,000 men at risk.
According to Thomas, it’s a significant trend, and it’s one that’s on the rise.
“Once I started looking at the literature, I found out that even though 1 percent of all breast cancers are male breast cancer, the incident is increasing significantly and it’s increased 26 percent over the last 25 years or so,” Thomas said. “But, researchers believe that the No. 1 risk factor for a man to get breast cancer is having a female relative, and that’s based on considering that some women may have the breast cancer gene. So, if you figure that about 1.3 million women are diagnosed with breast cancer and 20 percent of men have a female relative with breast cancer, then that’s a pretty large number of men that could potentially be at high risk.”
Thomas’ study, which has so far garnered 20 test subjects out of a target number of 30, asks participants basic questions about the disease — its causes, its treatment and its associations. The criteria for subjects were that they be aged 30 to 64, and that they have a female relative who has been diagnosed with the disease.
The results so far have revealed a wide spectrum of perceptions and reactions to the disease, a malady that the vast majority of the subjects associated only with females.
“The first question is, ‘Were you aware that men could develop breast cancer?’ And so far, out of 20, 17 were not aware. A lot of them said that they heard about the study so they called me to say, ‘What’s this all about?’” Thomas said. “The men that know about breast cancer, they had a lot of female family members that had breast cancer, so they started asking questions ... They were aware, but they don’t know a lot about it.”
When it came to questions about prevention and treatment, the responses revealed a similar gap in most respondents’ experience and knowledge regarding the disease.
“When I asked the men, ‘What has your health care provider told you about breast cancer in men?’ almost 100 percent say nothing,” Thomas said. “That’s concerning to me if these men may be at high risk. I’m not suggesting that all men go out and demand a mammogram or anything like that ... But I believe if men may be at high risk because they have a strong family history on the maternal side, then their doctor should start telling them that at least there’s a possibility and these are the things that you look for.”
In addition to familial history, potential causes for breast cancer in men include exposure to electromagnetic fields, high temperatures and long exposure to wood materials. It’s a set of risk factors that Thomas hopes to make more well-known.
While Thomas hopes to finish the preliminary study of 30 subjects by the end of the year, she hopes to launch similar efforts with a wider test base in the near future.
“My personal feeling is that we should be proactive. Four hundred men will die in the U.S. this year from breast cancer. If you think about it, men don’t have a lot of breast tissue, so if they get a lump or something, men are going to think, oh I just injured myself,” Thomas said. “I just want men to know that it is possible.”
For Mott, whose tumor was benign, such an effort boasts inherent value. Mott participated in Thomas’ study, and said that the potential for prevention and for healing rested in finding a community.
“(It’s) just knowing that most other men out there feel the same way that I did,” Mott said. “Just knowing that it’s OK, it’s OK to talk to others about it.”
“I was really hesitant in the beginning about even going to see the doctor, about the lump that I found in my own breast,” said Mott, the assistant director of admissions at the University of Colorado Denver College of Nursing in Aurora. “I waited a month or so before I really did anything once I discovered (it).”
Part of Mott’s reticence stemmed from the fact that he saw breast cancer as an affliction primarily associated with women, and while he had two sisters and an aunt who had the disease, the prospect remained difficult to process.
“I had this sort of theory, even though I felt that I was well-educated about breast cancer, that it was primarily a feminine disease,” Mott said. “To say that I had breast cancer, I didn’t think negatively that it was feminine, it just made me feel less of a person, because men didn’t get it. Even if they did, I didn’t know to what extent.”
According to Eileen Thomas, assistant professor at the UCD College of Nursing, it’s a side of the disease that remains largely unspoken, not only in the general population, but in the medical community as well. Thomas has launched a study designed to fill this common gap in knowledge and awareness concerning the breast cancer risk for men, an effort that poses general questions about the malady to a specific number of test subjects.
“I’m finding that even the male physicians don’t tend to speak out ... (I want) to promote awareness, not only among the general community, but among health care providers also, or at least let them know that men do want to know,” said Eileen Thomas, assistant professor at the UCD College of Nursing. “I’m hoping to increase awareness not only in the community but among health care professionals, too.”
According to Thomas, the number of men who will be impacted by breast cancer in 2008 alone is significant enough to rethink how the topic is treated in the medical community and the general population.
An estimated 2,000 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and about 450 will die from the disease in the U.S. this year. Comparatively, an estimated 1.3 million women will be diagnosed with breast cancer
this year.
What that means, according to Thomas’ research, that about 20 percent of the men diagnosed with the disease have a female relative with breast cancer, which translates to about 260,000 men at risk.
According to Thomas, it’s a significant trend, and it’s one that’s on the rise.
“Once I started looking at the literature, I found out that even though 1 percent of all breast cancers are male breast cancer, the incident is increasing significantly and it’s increased 26 percent over the last 25 years or so,” Thomas said. “But, researchers believe that the No. 1 risk factor for a man to get breast cancer is having a female relative, and that’s based on considering that some women may have the breast cancer gene. So, if you figure that about 1.3 million women are diagnosed with breast cancer and 20 percent of men have a female relative with breast cancer, then that’s a pretty large number of men that could potentially be at high risk.”
Thomas’ study, which has so far garnered 20 test subjects out of a target number of 30, asks participants basic questions about the disease — its causes, its treatment and its associations. The criteria for subjects were that they be aged 30 to 64, and that they have a female relative who has been diagnosed with the disease.
The results so far have revealed a wide spectrum of perceptions and reactions to the disease, a malady that the vast majority of the subjects associated only with females.
“The first question is, ‘Were you aware that men could develop breast cancer?’ And so far, out of 20, 17 were not aware. A lot of them said that they heard about the study so they called me to say, ‘What’s this all about?’” Thomas said. “The men that know about breast cancer, they had a lot of female family members that had breast cancer, so they started asking questions ... They were aware, but they don’t know a lot about it.”
When it came to questions about prevention and treatment, the responses revealed a similar gap in most respondents’ experience and knowledge regarding the disease.
“When I asked the men, ‘What has your health care provider told you about breast cancer in men?’ almost 100 percent say nothing,” Thomas said. “That’s concerning to me if these men may be at high risk. I’m not suggesting that all men go out and demand a mammogram or anything like that ... But I believe if men may be at high risk because they have a strong family history on the maternal side, then their doctor should start telling them that at least there’s a possibility and these are the things that you look for.”
In addition to familial history, potential causes for breast cancer in men include exposure to electromagnetic fields, high temperatures and long exposure to wood materials. It’s a set of risk factors that Thomas hopes to make more well-known.
While Thomas hopes to finish the preliminary study of 30 subjects by the end of the year, she hopes to launch similar efforts with a wider test base in the near future.
“My personal feeling is that we should be proactive. Four hundred men will die in the U.S. this year from breast cancer. If you think about it, men don’t have a lot of breast tissue, so if they get a lump or something, men are going to think, oh I just injured myself,” Thomas said. “I just want men to know that it is possible.”
For Mott, whose tumor was benign, such an effort boasts inherent value. Mott participated in Thomas’ study, and said that the potential for prevention and for healing rested in finding a community.
“(It’s) just knowing that most other men out there feel the same way that I did,” Mott said. “Just knowing that it’s OK, it’s OK to talk to others about it.”
 |
 |
|
| Judge who presided over Nacchio case resigns | Westerfield set for preliminary trial |
Reader Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of aurorasentinel.com.
You must register with a valid email to post comments. Only your Member ID will be posted with the comments.
Registered users sign in here: |
Become a Registered User |
RSS