Men Have a Higher Incidence of Seroma after Breast Cancer Surgery

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Male breast cancer (MBC) is rare. While surgical treatment may result in several complications in women, little is known about how it affects men. The objective of this study was to compare the incidence of postoperative wound complications between men and women after breast cancer surgery. METHODS: This cohort study included all male patients enrolled for breast cancer surgical treatment at the Brazilian National Cancer Institute, between 1999 and 2013. Each was matched with three female breast cancer patients. Parameters analyzed were necrosis, seroma and infection. Odds ratios (OR) were generated and statistical significance was considered at p<0.05. RESULTS: We included in this study 71 men and 213 women with an average age of 63.5 (±12.0). The incidences of complications in men and women were: necrosis, 32.8% and 37.8% (p=0.477); seroma, 80.6% and 59.4% (p=0.003); and surgical site infection, 14.8% and 18.2% (p=0.54). After adjustment, men had a 3 times greater risk of developing seroma compared to women (OR=3.0; IC95%=1.4-6.4; p=0.004). No statistically significant differences was detected in the incidences of wound infection and necrosis. CONCLUSION: Men have a greater risk of developing seroma after surgery for breast cancer than women, whereas infection and necrosis occur at similar frequencies in both genders.