Male Breast Cancer Study

Although breast cancer most often affects women, it also occurs in men, with around 300 cases diagnosed in the UK each year. Evidence suggests that men and women share similar genetic, environmental and behavioural risk factors. Possible risk factors for breast cancer in men include high alcohol consumption, obesity, lack of exercise, infertility, diabetes, family history of breast cancer, exposure to ionising radiation, electromagnetic fields, high temperatures and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Until now, there have been very few published male breast cancer studies,, which has been a key limitation in the investigation of the disease's aetiology.

The Male Breast Cancer Study  will investigate gene/environmental interactions and risks subdivided by hormone receptor status, and determine any links between male breast cancer and Klinefelter’s syndrome, a genetic disease in which males carry an extra X chromosome, thus becoming XXY rather than XY. Men with Klinefelter’s syndrome have a 60-fold raised risk of developing breast cancer.

It is also possible that a better understanding of breast cancer in men may provide clues regarding the aetiology of breast cancer in women, especially since risk factors in men can be examined without menstrual factors and childbearing. In addition, tumour samples will be subjected to immunohistochemical analysis. Researchers also hope to investigate potential therapeutic targets.

The Male Breast Cancer Study is a national population-based case-control study of the aetiology of breast cancer in men in England and Wales. The study aims to:

1) Investigate the genetic, environmental and behavioural aetiology of breast cancer in men on a much larger scale than any previous study in order to identify potentially preventable causes of breast cancer in men. Researchers also hope to illuminate from a novel angle the aetiology of breast cancer in women.

2) For the first time, investigate the risk of breast cancer in female relatives of men with breast cancer according to the genotype of the male cases, in order to provide more accurate risk estimates for women who have men in their family with breast cancer.

3) Investigate the pathology of male breast cancers in order to compare the disease in females and to identify novel therapeutic targets.
 
Participants will be asked by their consultant or GP if they would like to participate in the study. If so, they will be contacted by the study team. The study will take place for five years and will include 1,000 cases and 1,000 controls aged 18-79, from whom comprehensive data will be obtained by personal interview using a detailed questionnaire. A blood sample will also be taken to assess hormonal and genetic factors which may influence breast cancer risk in men. For 150 cases, a pathology sample will also be obtained. 

For more information, please contact:

Professor Anthony Swerdlow
Email: anthony.swerdlow@icr.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0) 20 8722 4012
Fax: +44 (0)20 8722 4019

Professor Alan Ashworth
Email: laura.wood@icr.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)20 7153 5333
Fax: +44 (0)20 7153 5340