Predominantly Women's Diseases Found In Men, Too

Right from our birth, we are faced with gender discrimination. The male and female stereotypes are so much reinforced into our subconscious minds that anything that doesn’t conform to these lines becomes very difficult to accept. Same holds true for the medical field too.

There are certain diseases that are so common in specific genders that we often ignore the symptoms of the disease, if present in the opposite gender. The end result of this ignorance is that the disease is often caught when it is in a pretty advanced stage, even though the symptoms were there in front of everybody. Let’s discuss some disease which are usually seen in women but even men are not safe from them

1. Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is so common in women that even when it is diagnosed in a man, he continues to live in denial. Statistics reveal that for every 108 cases of female breast cancer, there is one case of breast cancer in a male. More than 2000 new cases of male breast cancer are detected every year in the US alone. And it is a pity that these cancers are often diagnosed at an advanced stage even though it is far easier to detect breast cancer in men than in women.

When men detect any unusual lump or any discharge from their breasts, they tend to ignore it thinking it as a one off thing. Even if the lump grows, or the discharge is persistent, men are too embarrassed to consult a doctor. Even the medical practitioners are to be blamed. How often in our routine clinical practice do we examine men for breast cancer?  The end result of all this ignorance is that male breast cancer is diagnosed very late. The tumors when detected are pretty large and lymph node metastasis has already occurred. That is why the survival rate is low in male breast cancer patients.

2. Lupus

This is again one disease which men are pretty embarrassed about. Everyone knows that lupus is an autoimmune disease that affects women. Therefore, when men develop symptoms of lupus, neither they, nor their physicians think of the possibility.

It has been seen that one man is affected with lupus per nine women. And when seen in a man, the symptoms of lupus are particularly severe. However, if the disease is recognized early and the treatment is initiated at the correct time, the response is generally good.