Study to tackle 'stigma' of male breast cancer

Researchers are launching a survey of the 2,000 to 3,000 men living with breast cancer in the UK in an attempt to ensure they receive fair treatment from the NHS.

About 240 men a year are diagnosed with the disease but the problem receives little publicity and all the available treatment and advice is geared to women.

The £49,000 study at the University Hospital of Wales is funded by the charity Breast Cancer Campaign, the first time it has backed research on men. Dr Jonathan Gray, consultant in medical genetics, who is leading the study, said he hoped to publicise the disease and the response of male sufferers. "In the small group we looked at there was more shock, because the diagnosis was so unexpected, and there was a perception of stigma. One man stopped going swimming, and another told his grandson the scar was an injury he had received fighting with the Hussars – a sword cut not a surgeon's cut."

Ignorance about the disease in men led to long delays in diagnosis averaging six to nine months.

Men with breast cancer who want to take part in the survey can contact the research team on 02920 68 2154.