Perceptions and Opinions about Male Breast Cancer and Male Breast Self-Examination: A Qualitative Study

Objective: While the relatively common nature of female breast cancer has resulted in a high level of generalawareness, male breast cancer is still comparatively unknown to the general public and to healthcare professionals.The objective of this study is to explore the perceptions and opinions about male breast cancer and male breastself-examination among male university students. Methodology: In-depth interviews were conducted among 36male university students from the Management and Science University, Malaysia, selected by simple randomsampling. The themes of the interview were: knowledge of male breast cancer and male breast self-examination,sources of knowledge and attitudes towards male BSE. The data obtained were classified into various categoriesand analyzed manually.
Results: The majority of participants mentioned that there is a low possibility for malesto get breast cancer. They also believed that the cause of breast cancer among men is due to the carcinogensfrom cigarettes. The majority of participants mentioned that they know about breast self-examination from themass media and that the presence of a lump in the breast is the main symptom of breast cancer in men. Themajority of participants mentioned that they encourage their family members to practice breast self-examinationbut considered that BSE is not important for men because they have a low probability of getting breast cancer.
Conclusions: Misconceptions regarding male breast cancer and breast self-examination among men still existamong male university students. Therefore especial attention should be given to educate men about male breastcancer and male BSE.