Male breast cancer survivor shares his story
Two years ago, Winston McNab got the shock of his life when he discovered a lump in his breast.
After his third trip to the doctor and a series of tests at the Savanna-la-mar hospital Mc NcNab, now 69, was diagnosed with breast cancer.
McNab, of Grange Hill, Westmoreland, is rarity being among the fewer than one per cent of Jamaican males registered as breast cancer patients.
For the fact is, breast cancer is primarily a women’s disease. But occasionally, like with McNab, it does affect males.
“I found a bump in the breast and about the third time I went to the doctor, he decided to send me to the Sav hospital,” the labourer told All Woman in during an interview last week on the verandah of his home.
“They did blood tests and x-ray but at one point they could not find the results,” he said. “Them draw liquid out of the breast and at one point I was going in almost every week. Then finally the doctor said to me result or no result, we are going to burst it.”
So in April 2001 McNab was admitted to the Montego Bay hospital for the cancer to be removed from his breast.
“I spent four days in the hospital and them cut it on the Thursday,” he said. “I had the plaster on for about 30 days. They took out the lump and gave it to my family. It was afterwards that they told us it was cancer.”
“They gave it to us in a container but eventually we gave it back to the lab,” Marcia, the eldest of McNab’s five children, chimed in. his eldest of five children, Marcia, chimed in.
According to McNab, the removed lump about “half the size of a domino”.
“I was lucky to catch it early before it start spreading so it was not that big,” McNab said. “The doctor ask me if I had gotten hit on my breast. That may have been the reason for it.”
Experts say that it cases like McNab occur only very occasionally. Men usually suffer from a range of other cancers. Cancer of the prostate, for instance, is one that has gained increasing attention in recent years.
A recent study of cancer patients in the western region of Jamaica from 1998-2002, showed that there 325 patients ages 20 to 102 years old registered for treatment. Of that number 0.6 percent, or two cases were men.
Like many breast cancer patients, McNab’s treatment included chemotherapy, or what he called ‘burning.’
“I was afraid of the burning and initially I would not sign the consent form until I had discussed it with my family,” he said.
Luckily for McNab, the side-effects of his chemotherapy were minimal.
“It never hurt me at all ú even before it was diagnosed,” he said.
Although they all talk easily about it, McNab’s family did not did not come easily to the fact that he might have breast cancer.
Said daughter Marcia: ” Initially when he just felt the lump he said, ‘Marcia feel this ú is cancer, you know’. I told him, “No man — is just one breast bigger than the other’. But he turned out to be right. It has been very expensive getting treatment.”
The expense of cancer treatment is a matter for the McNab family and other people in similar circumstances.
“I did not feel good when I heard about it because I knew it would take money and we did not have it,” said his daughter Jennifer. “But everybody try to put together and help out.”
The father of five is thankful that so far the doctors have seen no sign of the return of the cancer. But he still maintains regular visits to both the Savanna la Mar and Montego Bay hospitals. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death in Jamaican women, claiming the lives of 301 persons in 1999.
“I go to Sav every six months and MoBay every six,” he said.
According to the family they were just happy that the cancer had been caught early although it had been a rocky time for them.
“One of the times him say him not going back to the hospital because the amount a times them stick the breast,” said Marcia. “…But me encourage him. So now him doing alright.”