Let's Talk about Gyno... But, skip the surgery push

[saveuplife]

I've read through this site. I'm not interested in surgery. I have unilateral glandular gyno. I'm 30. I've had it since December. I took saw palmetto for hairloss for about 4 months before December. This was the unforunate result, I stopped using saw palmetto and anything I thought could possibly cause this in December. It's April. The gyno has molded, and changed in position. For instance, it's more flat now. But, I'd say wider (meaning less distance from my chest, but longer across the chest). I'm hoping it's flattening out. But, I don't know if that's how this works..

A few questions:

When glandular gyno does go away, how does it go away? Meaning, exactly what happens? Does the gland shrink? Does it break apart into pieces? Please don't say it doesn't go away from being noticed. I had it when I was a teen, and yea, it went away. So how does that process happen? I'd like to know, so I can tell if mine is going away.

[doublebee77]

wow i was just about to post the exact same question. i know my unilateral gyno is changing form slowly as well, possibly due to my antigyno efforts. i feel that the tissue is concentrating closer to the nipple. what i dont know is if that is because tissue is growing or because its becoming smaller at the perimeters plus normal chest fat lose.

[Paa_Paw]

Over time, meaning a long time, the breast tissue shrinks. It does not go away. This is true even in women and their breasts often shrink as they age. The breast tissue does not fully develop except during pregnancy and lactation which is not a concern for us though there are some pituitary tumors that could be problematic.

The breast is composed of both fatty and glandular tissue, rarely would one be present to any extent without the other.

Weight loss may reduce the breast size, but don't put too much faith in this as the breast area would seem to be the first place where fad is deposited and the last place where it is lost.

There are a number of prescription drugs that have limited effect upon the male breast but their use is really effective only when the breast tissue has not stabilized. Thus they might be considered more preventative than treatment.

Once the breast tissue has stabilized the only choices are to get used to it or have it reduced surgically. I am quite certain this is not the news you wanted, but it is the truth.

Many people are marketing so called "cures" for gynecomastia. These are scams that are effective only to reduce the thickness of your wallet.

[saveuplife]

Over time, meaning a long time, the breast tissue shrinks. It does not go away. This is true even in women and their breasts often shrink as they age. The breast tissue does not fully develop except during pregnancy and lactation which is not a concern for us though there are some pituitary tumors that could be problematic.

The breast is composed of both fatty and glandular tissue, rarely would one be present to any extent without the other.

Weight loss may reduce the breast size, but don't put too much faith in this as the breast area would seem to be the first place where fad is deposited and the last place where it is lost.

There are a number of prescription drugs that have limited effect upon the male breast but their use is really effective only when the breast tissue has not stabilized. Thus they might be considered more preventative than treatment.

Once the breast tissue has stabilized the only choices are to get used to it or have it reduced surgically. I am quite certain this is not the news you wanted, but it is the truth.

Many people are marketing so called "cures" for gynecomastia. These are scams that are effective only to reduce the thickness of your wallet.

Very surprising, a push for surgery (on a forum that is constantly pushing surgery)... look, i'm not interested in bashing surgery, I'm just seeking answers... and you provided no answer to how gynecomastia does go away when it does go away.

If you want to continue down the road of "it doesn't go away ever", please answer a simple question...

...How does gynecomastia "go away" in newborns? How does it "go away" for an extremely large percentage of boys after puberty? Gyno was there, now it's gone.... my question can be boiled down to this one...

...when it does go away for boys after puberty... what's the process? Does it break up? Does it shrink slowly? ect.

[Paa_Paw]

It shrinks slowly. When the Doctor says it will go away in a couple of years, he stands about a 50% chance of being right. The rest of us are not so fortunate.

By the way, I do not push surgery. I would much prefer to see the prevalence of the condition be simply accepted as one end of the normal scale. This would, after all, be correct.

Realistically, if a man has enlarged breasts that have been stable for a couple of years there are few options. He can accept his condition, conceal the breasts with some sort of compression garment, or have his breasts surgically reduced.

There are no magic pills that work nor is there any exercise that will make it go away. I'm fully aware that this is not the answer you wanted, but it is the truth.

By the way, I still have mine at the age of 72; If you are going to try and say this is ruining your life, you'll not get any sympathy from me. Either live with it or have surgery, there are no other choices.

[saveuplife]

It shrinks slowly. When the Doctor says it will go away in a couple of years, he stands about a 50% chance of being right. The rest of us are not so fortunate.

By the way, I do not push surgery. I would much prefer to see the prevalence of the condition be simply accepted as one end of the normal scale. This would, after all, be correct.

Realistically, if a man has enlarged breasts that have been stable for a couple of years there are few options. He can accept his condition, conceal the breasts with some sort of compression garment, or have his breasts surgically reduced.

There are no magic pills that work nor is there any exercise that will make it go away. I'm fully aware that this is not the answer you wanted, but it is the truth.

By the way, I still have mine at the age of 72; If you are going to try and say this is ruining your life, you'll not get any sympathy from me. Either live with it or have surgery, there are no other choices.

I’m 30, I have gyno on one side…. I understand that if I had this condition for a long period of time on both breasts, then there’s little to no chance of it going away. But, I’ve had for a few months. I weigh 180, I’m 6’2. This is not fat… and once again, it’s unilateral. It appeared in December and is still here, but changing. My use of Saw Palmetto must have triggered this, and I believe a surgery doesn’t solve the problem. It’s most likely a hormonal issue. I hope it goes away with time, but I am planning on seeing a doc in case. I posed a fairly direct and simple question here and in doing so I was seeking assistance and knowledge… it appears that this wasn’t the right place for that.

Anyway, please do yourself a favor and read through some other threads. There is indeed a push for surgery here. Maybe in most cases, rightly so. Maybe in some, not so much. I don’t know for sure. All I know is it makes sense there would be a push for surgery, as it clears up the cosmetic issue for people and creates demand to make the doctors money. In my opinion, there’s nothing wrong with the push for surgery as long as people not wanting surgery also can get informed without a surgery push. The proof to me that this place is all about pushing surgery was there was not one answer from a Doctor to my thread that said “no surgery push”, yet was seeking fairly simple information.

Anyway, this issue, for me atleast, isn’t just cosmetic. There’s an underlying cause… trimming it out cosmetically doesn’t seem to answer the fact that it was created for a reason. I want to know how to solve the underlying hormone problem. I have stopped the Saw Palmetto, but I want my hormones to realign. And I was curious, if my body was already doing that… so I wanted to know how this goes away… whether it shrinks or breaks up or flattens out. I will seek answers elsewhere.

[dondante]

Wow, I've been on these boards for awhile now and would never have expected Paa-Paw of all people being accused of "pushing" surgery. Paa-Paw is one of these most prolific posters on this these boards, and his posts are always reasonable and compassionate, I think it's quite arrogant of you to tell him to do himself a favour and read through some other posts... There is certainly a push for surgery on these boards, and the reason is quite simple, most people who come here are looking to get rid of their gyne - and surgery is the only PROVEN solution.

You say you posed a direct and simple question. Unfortunately for you, there is no direct and simply answer. There hasn't been the sort of scientific study done on the subject that could answer your questions fully. You're probably right to suspect that your unilateral gyne is the result of something hormonal. My advice to you would be to ask your doctor to refer you to an endocrinologist who could perform tests on you to investigate the state of your hormonal system.

[carguy]

I think most of the people here(including doctors) say to get your hormones checked if its in its early stages or you're a teenager.
Most of us have had gyno since puberty and it has stayed with us. Some for over 10 years. I think its safe to say that your hormones are back to normal 10 years after puberty unless you have some kind of underlying condition.
Once you know that your hormones are fine, surgery is the best option for doing away with this once and for all.
The reason there is a push for surgery here is because, it has come with results that have left most of the people here satisfied and comfortable with themselves.
 I got surgery and I feel it was the best thing I've ever done in my life. If I hadn't done it, I'd still be suffering and probably be working so bs low paying job or be dead.
Most of us have suffered for way longer than the "few" months you've had gyne...
About your question... most people who had gyne and had it go away,  probably wouldn't come here or even know the name of the condition. Most of us have suffered for 10-20 years before finding this site.  Before surgery, when I used to come here a lot, people would always say wait a few years if they were young. So I don't think there is an agenda.

It is strange that some doctors hang out here, but you don't have to choose them and you can always get second opinions.

[toolhead]

It is strange that some doctors hang out here, but you don't have to choose them and you can always get second opinions.

Not strange at all, the doctors on these boards are extremely helpful. Certainly, they benefit if they manage to get a few operations booked but it's very apparent that the doctors that post the most often are simply the most passionate about treating gynecomastia.

[dondante]

Not strange at all, the doctors on these boards are extremely helpful. Certainly, they benefit if they manage to get a few operations booked but it's very apparent that the doctors that post the most often are simply the most passionate about treating gynecomastia.

Totally agree, I regularly see the active doctors on these boards posting answers to questions from post-ops, so there would be absolutely no future profitability for them. Their involvement here, in my opinion, stems just as much from their passion about the subject as from any potential for new business leads.

No doctor involvement, and people would gripe that the doctors don't give a shit... a high level of involvement, and they're only here to "push" their product. Some people are never happy...