Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

Can men get breast cancer?  Father of two shocked by the diagnosis from a small lump<!-- wp:html --><div></div> <div> <p class="mol-para-with-font">The father of two, who was diagnosed with breast cancer on Christmas Eve 2019, first noticed a pea-sized lump on his nipple in 2016.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Danny Goss from Victoria went for an ultrasound at the time and doctors told him it was ‘just a cyst’ and ‘nothing to worry about’. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">But three years later, the small two-centimeter lump remained, so Danny thought it best to go back to the doctor, where he was diagnosed with shock.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">This decision likely saved his life as cancer cells had begun to spread throughout his body, sparking a battle that he is still fighting today.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">“I didn’t know men could get breast cancer – I thought men were safe from it,” the 46-year-old IT manager told FEMAIL. </p> <div class="artSplitter mol-img-group"> <div class="mol-img"> <div class="image-wrap"> </div> </div> <p class="imageCaption">Danny Goss, from Victoria, first noticed a pea-sized lump on his left nipple in 2016 and an ultrasound revealed it was ‘just a cyst’ that was ‘nothing to worry about’ (Image: Danny , left, with his family visiting Sydney )</p> </div> <div class="artSplitter mol-img-group"> <div class="mol-img"> <div class="image-wrap"> </div> </div> <p class="imageCaption">But three years later, the tiny 2cm lump still hadn’t gone, motivating Danny enough to get it checked again. After the second ultrasound in 2019, Danny received a call and was completely stunned after hearing the words ‘breast cancer’ (pictured with wife Belinda)</p> </div> <p class="mol-para-with-font">After the second ultrasound in 2019, Danny was completely stunned to receive the dreaded ‘you have breast cancer’ phone call.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">“I didn’t expect it at all and felt everything would be okay because it had been cleared before – it’s never a good day to find out you have cancer,” he said. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">‘I was confused because I didn’t know how common it was in men. Luckily the cancer was in the early stages when I was diagnosed.’</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">In Australia, breast cancer is the second most common cancer, with 57 people diagnosed every day, the majority of whom are women.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">About 150 men are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in Australia, most over the age of 50. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Danny said the small lump was his only symptom, it didn’t hurt to the touch and he has no family history of breast cancer. </p> <div class="artSplitter mol-img-group"> <div class="mol-img"> <div class="image-wrap"> </div> </div> <p class="imageCaption">On Christmas Day, Danny had ‘a million thoughts and so many questions’ running through his head. “Because of the holidays I couldn’t rest until mid-January – it was an anxious few weeks of waiting,” he said </p> </div> <p class="mol-para-with-font">After seeing the doctor, Danny had a biopsy and further scans to confirm it was cancer, then started chemotherapy in February for six months; luckily he had few side effects. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">“I lived a healthy lifestyle, no longer smoke or drink, eat well and exercise when I can,” said Danny.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">‘Unfortunately, things got worse when the cancer had been found in two lymph nodes – meaning it was more likely to spread elsewhere.’ </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">He also had a mastectomy to ‘cut out some’ tissue and remove a number of lymph nodes under his arm.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Danny then had five weeks of radiotherapy, which was ‘much easier than chemotherapy’. </p> <div class="art-ins mol-factbox femail"> <h3 class="mol-factbox-title">What are the signs of breast cancer in men?</h3> <div class="ins cleared mol-factbox-body"> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Symptoms of breast cancer in men are similar to those in women and include: </p> <p>a breast lump<br /> thickening of the breast tissue<br /> indentation of the breast skin<br /> change in the shape of the breast or nipple<br /> a discharge from the nipple<br /> a painful area<br /> swollen lymph nodes in the armpit area</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Source:<a target="_blank" class="class" href="https://www.cancer.org.au/cancer-information/types-of-cancer/breast-cancer-in-men" rel="noopener"> cancer.org</a></p> </div> </div> <p class="mol-para-with-font">In the six months that followed, Danny felt ‘much better’ and doctors believed they had removed all traces of the cancer. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">But in July 2021, Danny’s hip started to feel sore and, although he wasn’t worried, he visited the doctor ‘just in case’. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Scans discovered two cancerous spots on his hip and shoulder bones, leaving Danny to deal with another major blow. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">‘It felt like I was back to day one, but the prognosis was far worse,’ he said, adding that he had to stop himself from ‘Googling’ everything. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">A high dose of radiotherapy to the hip and shoulder followed, along with another round of chemotherapy.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Today, Danny is not ‘in the clear’ yet, taking three evening pills daily and getting injections once a month with the hope of killing any remaining traces of cancer completely.</p> <div class="artSplitter mol-img-group"> <div class="mol-img"> <div class="image-wrap"> </div> </div> <p class="imageCaption">Danny received chemotherapy and radiation treatment which he thought cleared the cancer, but unfortunately in July 2021 doctors found it had spread to his shoulder and hip. High dose radiotherapy to the hip and shoulder followed, along with another round of chemotherapy (pictured with his daughter)</p> </div> <p class="mol-para-with-font">“It’s all looking really good now,” Danny said.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">“During my tests, doctors measure tumor markers in the blood and mine continued to rise over the last few months but then suddenly dropped, which is great to hear.” </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Despite living with cancer, Danny has continued to work and in December completed a 70km walk over five days in Tasmania with his daughter and extended family. </p> <div class="artSplitter mol-img-group"> <div class="mol-img"> <div class="image-wrap"> </div> </div> <p class="imageCaption">Today Danny is not ‘in the clear’ yet and takes three evening pills daily and gets injections once a month with the hope of killing any remaining traces of cancer completely </p> </div> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Danny hopes his story can inspire other men to be diligent about health checks and raise awareness that men can also be diagnosed with breast cancer. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">‘I’m so glad I went to get checked when I did. Sometimes I think what would have happened if I hadn’t gone back, he said. </p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">‘I knew something was wrong because the lump hadn’t gone away; I thought “this is not right”.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">“Even if the results came back clear the second time, I probably would have had it removed anyway just to be safe.”</p> </div><!-- /wp:html -->

The father of two, who was diagnosed with breast cancer on Christmas Eve 2019, first noticed a pea-sized lump on his nipple in 2016.

Danny Goss from Victoria went for an ultrasound at the time and doctors told him it was ‘just a cyst’ and ‘nothing to worry about’.

But three years later, the small two-centimeter lump remained, so Danny thought it best to go back to the doctor, where he was diagnosed with shock.

This decision likely saved his life as cancer cells had begun to spread throughout his body, sparking a battle that he is still fighting today.

“I didn’t know men could get breast cancer – I thought men were safe from it,” the 46-year-old IT manager told FEMAIL.

Danny Goss, from Victoria, first noticed a pea-sized lump on his left nipple in 2016 and an ultrasound revealed it was ‘just a cyst’ that was ‘nothing to worry about’ (Image: Danny , left, with his family visiting Sydney )

But three years later, the tiny 2cm lump still hadn’t gone, motivating Danny enough to get it checked again. After the second ultrasound in 2019, Danny received a call and was completely stunned after hearing the words ‘breast cancer’ (pictured with wife Belinda)

After the second ultrasound in 2019, Danny was completely stunned to receive the dreaded ‘you have breast cancer’ phone call.

“I didn’t expect it at all and felt everything would be okay because it had been cleared before – it’s never a good day to find out you have cancer,” he said.

‘I was confused because I didn’t know how common it was in men. Luckily the cancer was in the early stages when I was diagnosed.’

In Australia, breast cancer is the second most common cancer, with 57 people diagnosed every day, the majority of whom are women.

About 150 men are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in Australia, most over the age of 50.

Danny said the small lump was his only symptom, it didn’t hurt to the touch and he has no family history of breast cancer.

On Christmas Day, Danny had ‘a million thoughts and so many questions’ running through his head. “Because of the holidays I couldn’t rest until mid-January – it was an anxious few weeks of waiting,” he said

After seeing the doctor, Danny had a biopsy and further scans to confirm it was cancer, then started chemotherapy in February for six months; luckily he had few side effects.

“I lived a healthy lifestyle, no longer smoke or drink, eat well and exercise when I can,” said Danny.

‘Unfortunately, things got worse when the cancer had been found in two lymph nodes – meaning it was more likely to spread elsewhere.’

He also had a mastectomy to ‘cut out some’ tissue and remove a number of lymph nodes under his arm.

Danny then had five weeks of radiotherapy, which was ‘much easier than chemotherapy’.

What are the signs of breast cancer in men?

Symptoms of breast cancer in men are similar to those in women and include:

a breast lump
thickening of the breast tissue
indentation of the breast skin
change in the shape of the breast or nipple
a discharge from the nipple
a painful area
swollen lymph nodes in the armpit area

Source: cancer.org

In the six months that followed, Danny felt ‘much better’ and doctors believed they had removed all traces of the cancer.

But in July 2021, Danny’s hip started to feel sore and, although he wasn’t worried, he visited the doctor ‘just in case’.

Scans discovered two cancerous spots on his hip and shoulder bones, leaving Danny to deal with another major blow.

‘It felt like I was back to day one, but the prognosis was far worse,’ he said, adding that he had to stop himself from ‘Googling’ everything.

A high dose of radiotherapy to the hip and shoulder followed, along with another round of chemotherapy.

Today, Danny is not ‘in the clear’ yet, taking three evening pills daily and getting injections once a month with the hope of killing any remaining traces of cancer completely.

Danny received chemotherapy and radiation treatment which he thought cleared the cancer, but unfortunately in July 2021 doctors found it had spread to his shoulder and hip. High dose radiotherapy to the hip and shoulder followed, along with another round of chemotherapy (pictured with his daughter)

“It’s all looking really good now,” Danny said.

“During my tests, doctors measure tumor markers in the blood and mine continued to rise over the last few months but then suddenly dropped, which is great to hear.”

Despite living with cancer, Danny has continued to work and in December completed a 70km walk over five days in Tasmania with his daughter and extended family.

Today Danny is not ‘in the clear’ yet and takes three evening pills daily and gets injections once a month with the hope of killing any remaining traces of cancer completely

Danny hopes his story can inspire other men to be diligent about health checks and raise awareness that men can also be diagnosed with breast cancer.

‘I’m so glad I went to get checked when I did. Sometimes I think what would have happened if I hadn’t gone back, he said.

‘I knew something was wrong because the lump hadn’t gone away; I thought “this is not right”.

“Even if the results came back clear the second time, I probably would have had it removed anyway just to be safe.”

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