Clinical examination allied to ultrasonography in the assessment of new onset gynaecomastia: an observational study.

AIM: New onset gynaecomastia is a relatively common presentation to breast surgical services. The main aim of clinical and radiological evaluation is to exclude the presence of concurrent breast cancer. There exists much variability in the clinical assessment of male patients presenting with new onset gynaecomastia.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: In the presented pilot study, all the male patients presenting with new onset gynaecomastia to our department over a period of two years were studied.

RESULTS: Fifty three patients presented with new onset gynaecomastia during the study period. Clinical examination allied with ultrasonography confirmed benign breast disease in 50 patients with only three patient requiring breast biopsy to exclude malignancy. We detail the efficacy of utilising clinical examination in conjunction with ultrasonography to evaluate new onset gynaecomastia.

CONCLUSIONS: We show that clinical examination used in conjunction with ultrasonography is both highly sensitive and specific for detecting male breast cancer in patients presenting with new onset gynaecomastia.