Newcastle dad with breast cancer urges awareness after disease returns incurable

A Newcastle dad who was diagnosed with breast cancer before the disease returned in his spine and "riddled" his body nearly two decades later is urging other men not to "die of ignorance".

Brian Place, a 60 year old operations manager, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005 after discovering a pea-sized lump in his left breast. Despite initially delaying seeing his GP as he didn't believe men could get the disease, he underwent a mastectomy. In 2007, he chose to have his right breast removed too, feeling "asymmetrical" and due to the cells showing cancer-capable tendencies.

By 2010, he was discharged as a cancer patient. Brian said he was then cancer-free and able to "get on with life", but in August 2023, he began experiencing severe back pain, which worsened to the point where he was "crawling along the floor".

This led to the discovery in February this year that the cancer had returned, affecting his spine, pelvis and liver. Now, he is managing his secondary diagnosis with medication.

Although the cancer is stage 4 and incurable, and he was told he has a "50/50 chance of making five years", he said he feels "lucky" that he can still enjoy his favourite pastimes, such as playing golf and going to concerts. While advising other men in a conversation with PA Real Life, he expressed: "Don’t die of ignorance. This is a genderless disease, check yourself and if you find anything suspicious – get it checked out straight away."

"Men must not be an ostrich and stick their head in the sand... because they really need to get the help when it’s the right time to get the help."

Before his own shocking realisation, he admitted to having "Blokes, particularly, every single one that you talk to, even on the Men’s VMU, will tell you that they had no idea that men could get breast cancer. " Now, he actively participates in the Men’s VMU (virtual meet-up), a breast cancer support network specifically for men, although in the days of his first discovery, he remarked that available support, guidance and resources appeared quite scarce.

Recalling the time in 2005 when he found a lump in his left breast while taking a shower—describing it as "small, round and mobile, like a frozen pea"—he initially thought it was just a cyst. "I was playing rugby at the time, a high-impact sport, and I thought I’d taken a bump in the chest and a cyst had grown as a result," he said.

The possibility of cancer didn't cross his mind. The father of two, Ainsley, aged 33, and Devon, aged 27, reflected on waiting a month before deciding to see his GP after the lump remained, leading to a referral to a breast clinic.

His experience at the clinic was an oddity; being the only man there made him feel like "a duck out of water", where he encountered a mammogram, fine needle aspiration, and an ultrasound scan.

He underwent a biopsy which confirmed breast cancer in 2005, and the surgeon estimated that the tumour may have been growing for approximately five to six years. "Nothing can prepare you for it. It’s just shock getting told that you’ve got cancer for the first time," he shared.

Leading breast cancer expert Professor Valerie Speirs revealed that around 400 men are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK annually. She mentioned: "This type of cancer is frequently oestrogen receptor positive, which means that men can receive endocrine therapy, typically a drug called Tamoxifen, as part of their treatment."

"Initially, this treatment was given for five years but can now be extended to 10 years if it is well tolerated by patients."

After his diagnosis, Brian had a mastectomy to remove his left breast followed by radiotherapy, and started on Tamoxifen.

But the drug's side effects – including hot sweats, aching joints, and weight gain – were so severe that he felt like he "should be in a wheelchair", leading him to discontinue its usage after seven months. To avoid feeling "completely asymmetrical" and reduce further cancer risk, he chose to undergo a second mastectomy in 2007, leaving him with two nine-inch scars and without nipples, which, he says, "doesn’t bother (him) in the slightest".

Brian recounted his initial hesitance to expose his chest after cancer treatment, recalling, "Once you’ve taken that step to actually go bare-chested on holiday or around the pool or even the back garden, nobody takes a second glance," He shared how he feared not being accepted but found, "I had that little bit of trepidation that I was not going to be accepted, but quite frankly, it was never a problem."

Brian thought life returned to "normal" after being discharged as a cancer patient in 2010 and considered himself "lucky" that the cancer was detected early enough, sparing him from prolonged treatment.

Yet, August 2023 brought new challenges when he experienced back pain during golf, which by Christmas, escalated to the extent where he "could barely stand or get dressed," suffering from "constant, excruciating pain".

His health took a significant turn when subsequent MRI and CT scans showed a vertebra collapse, shortening his height by 3cm, and in February 2024, it was confirmed the cancer had returned and spread. Brian gravely recounted asking his oncologist about the severity of his condition, "I said (to the oncologist), ‘Would it be fair to say that I’m riddled? ’ And he said, ‘We don’t like to use that word but yes, pretty much’."

Despite the everyday pain and possibility of needing palliative radiotherapy, Brian, with the aid of medication, has recovered some mobility and maintains a certain "quality of life".

Given he was told he has a "50/50 chance of making five years", he said he wants to continue to "look at the positive side of things" and help raise awareness of breast cancer in men. He said the Men’s VMU has been "fantastic", and he wants to encourage others to get any unusual symptoms checked as soon as possible.

"Men are not immune to this type of cancer," Brian said. "Blokes, particularly, every single one that you talk to, even on the Men’s VMU, will tell you that they had no idea that men could get breast cancer. " "Get the message out there, people are less ignorant, and the sooner they catch it, the better quality of life they’re going to have, maybe even a cure."

To find out more about The Men’s VMU, visit: themensvmu.org.

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