Survival Patterns in Male Breast Cancer Are Distinct From Female Breast Cancer

A study aimed to assess and contrast the long-term survival outcomes and disease patterns of male breast cancer (MBC) patients with those of their female counterparts.

Researchers analyzed data from 113,845 patients diagnosed with breast cancer who had undergone curative surgery from the Korean Breast Cancer Registry (KBCR) between January 1990 and August 2014, including 473 MBC cases. Five-year overall survival was analyzed using clinicopathological characteristics.

The results showed that most (92.6%) male patients underwent total mastectomy, while just over half (50.4%) of female patients underwent breast-conserving surgery. Among MBC patients, 63.2% received chemotherapy, and 83.9% of hormone receptor-positive male patients received endocrine therapy. The researchers noted that MBC demonstrated distinct 5-year overall survival patterns compared with female breast cancer, according to age at diagnosis. Notably, the results showed that in women with breast cancer, those in the younger age group (≤40 years of age) demonstrated worse 5-year overall survival than those in the older age group (>40 years of age; 91.3% vs 92.7%; P<.05). While in MBC, those in the younger age group (≤40 years of age) demonstrated better 5-year overall survival than those in the older age group (>40 years of age; 97.4% vs 86.4%; P<.05).

“In conclusion within this extensive cohort, we have revealed unique survival patterns in MBC that diverge from those observed in women with breast cancer. This study enhances our comprehension of MBC prognosis and can potentially shed light on unresolved questions, paving the way for future research in the realm of MBC,” the researchers wrote.