Breast cancer affects more than 2750 New Zealand women every year, but it's not just a woman's disease. Each year around 20 men are also diagnosed with breast cancer.

Many of the men who are diagnosed may have a family history of the disease and may carry the faulty genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 which means they are more susceptible to breast cancer.

Men should be on the lookout for similar symptoms to women, including:

There are numerous clinical trials taking place around New Zealand to gather evidence about new medicines or treatment methods that may help to improve breast cancer care in future.

In a clinical trial, a large number of women with breast cancer will be asked to test a new medicine, group of medicines or treatment method. 

Researchers can then compare the outcomes for these women with the outcomes for women on a more usual treatment programme.

If you’re a younger woman with breast cancer, you may be concerned about how the disease and treatment may affect your fertility and your future ability to have children.

No two breast cancer journeys are exactly alike, but knowing what other women have gone through can mean we don’t feel so alone.

A study is currently underway through the University of Auckland to look at the psychological impact of fears about cancer recurrence in women who’ve been treated for breast cancer.

The research project will involve up to 130 New Zealand women who have been treated for breast cancer and is being run by doctoral student, Loshni Rogers.

Speaking with other women who have breast cancer can be a great support as you go through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. 

Now, you can now connect with others who have had breast cancer on the BCAC website – thanks to a joint initiative between BCAC and the Cancer Society of New Zealand.

The breast cancer thread of the Society’s internet forum, CancerChat, can now be accessed on the BCAC site.

I am 54 years old and six years ago when I was doing a breast self examination , I realised that something had changed in my right breast.

It had always been “harder” than the left but I had that checked years before. However, for the last few years, my GP had flagged the upper part of my right breast as an area to ultrasound after my mammogram.

SNAC-2 is a trial comparing two operations for detecting cancer cells in the lymph nodes of women with early breast cancer.

The two operations are:

• axillary clearance
• sentinel node biopsy.

You can find out more about these two techniques on our surgery page.

Women aged 40 years and over who have had surgery for early stage invasive breast cancer are invited to take part in this research study, called RAPID.

Research has shown that breast conserving surgery (removing part of the breast) followed by radiation treatment is as effective as mastectomy (removing the entire breast). 

Radiation treatment after surgery improves the chances of not developing further cancer in the affected breast.

The shock of a new diagnosis; the challenge of treatment; and the relief of survival make for powerful viewing in a new series of web videos exploring Kiwi experiences of breast cancer.

Kiwi Stories of Breast Cancer has been produced by the Breast Cancer Aotearoa Coalition (BCAC) and features 15 women and men talking candidly about diagnosis, treatment and recovery from breast cancer.  You can view their stories here.