Should I take my son to the doctor?

[4myson]

Hi. I have a thirteen-year-old son who has a lump under his nipple. I first noticed it in the summer. When I questioned him about it, he said he noticed it months before that, but never mentioned it. When I looked on the Internet for information, I found that it can be quite normal for this to happen to boys during adolscence; and that it may go away within months or years. My son's lump (and puffy nipple) seems to be getting larger, if anything. He's a very skinny boy, so it's somewhat noticeable, especially since it's only on one side. Is this something that I should be concerned about? He does have a very small third nipple, possibly even a fourth. Does that make him more susceptible to this condition? How likely is it that he will develop breast tissue that will not go away? I remember my brothers suffering from enlarged breasts, growing up, but they were all on the heavy side; so I didn't expect to experience this problem with my son. Is there anything at all that can be done about this? Or, should I just wait it out? Any information you could give me would be much appreciated. One more quick question: Has there ever been a correlation between this condition and soy? My son drank soy forumla as an infant. Later, I heard that soy had been linked with excessive estrogen in some males, so when this happened, I wondered...

[flex1appeal]

I say be proactive and take him to see a general practitioner followed by an endocrinologist. Have his hormones checked to make sure he is in balance. I wouldn't necessarily worry about extreme procedures such as surgery at this point. He is young and you don't even know what he has if anything. Establish what condition(s) he has before doing anything else.

flex

[gabbyhey]

I agree with flex.  It can't hurt to look at the problem now.  It's nice to see a mother who has concern over this.

[Grandpa Bambu]

It's nice to see a mother who has concern over this.

Or 'Father'....   '4myson' did not indicate their gender.

GB

[Grandpa Bambu]

Have his hormones checked to make sure he is in balance.

At 13, his hormones may be way out of 'balance'....

GB

[gabbyhey]

good pont GB, I ignorantly assumed it would be a mom, either way it's nice that a parent would take these steps.

[Grandpa Bambu]

good pont GB, I ignorantly assumed it would be a mom.

For some odd reason, I assumed 4myson is the father.  Then I read your post and realized that 4myson did not indicate either way.

Either way it's nice that a parent would take these steps.

For sure dude. It shows that they care. Good on them!   

GB

[flex1appeal]

I, too, assumed it was the father posting. Not sure why.

[Grandpa Bambu]

4myson...

You should take your son to see your GP. The lump may be cancerous. You never know eh....

As far as asking your GP about Gynecomastia and what can be done about it, don't bother as you can learn as much, more even, here on the boards. He/She will only tell you to wait until your son has past the pubescent stage. So... you'll be no further ahead IMHO.

GB

[Hypo-is-here]

The odds of the lump being cancer is extremely low.  Only 1% of all male cancers are breast cancer and breast cancer accounts for less than 1% of causes for gynecomastia.

I would say that if you want your son to see a doctor then it should at least be a doctor who specialises in the causes of gynecomastia and that is an endocrinologist.

[4myson]

Thanks for all the replies. I'll call his pediatrician tomorrow. If she tells me it's a normal part of puberty and to wait it out, I'll get back on the board to see if anyone has some more proactive advice. By the way, I am his mom. 

[Mr_Nip]

Dang, I was with Bambu.  I thought it was the dad. 

4myson, your son is very fortunate to have you for a mom. 

[gabbyhey]

haha!  I knew it was the mom.  I've got that sixth sense thing going on, right?  Anyway, keep up the good work ma!

[Grandpa Bambu]

haha!  I knew it was the mom.

GB

[headheldhigh01]

on the other subject, since you asked, my non-professional but considered opinion is your kid is probably much safer with the soy than with the dairy stuff.  in spite of the factory farm industry's fear campaigns, i believe soy phytoestrogens are about 1/500th as effective as regular estrogens and can compete for the same chemical receptors, reducing its effect.  meat and dairy on the other hand are imho a serious hormones risk.  an excerpt from something i once posted on the subject: 

Quote:
General / Gynecomastia Talk / Re: Drinking Milk  May 11th, 2004, 11:28pm
i got fed lots of milk as a kid too and for my part still remain strongly suspicious of the hormones in milk [i.e. in the gyne connection] , particularly after i read an item that included this:
Quote:
For more than fifty years, U.S. farmers have used both natural and artificial hormones to increase the growth rates of livestock. Just like bodybuilders can bulk up on steroids, these steroid hormones make cattle grow bigger and faster. Of course the USDA doesn't like to call them growth hormones, they call them "meat quality enhancers," which they note is a "more consumer friendly term."
 
According to the USDA, these hormones can eliminate as many as 21 days of feeding time-same weight, 21 days earlier-which saves lots of money. But Europe in the eighties had just gotten over this thing where little babies started growing breasts and menstruating after eating baby food made from veal calves pumped with the hormone DES and then there were all these cancers and genital deformities and so January 1st, 1989 Europe banned the production and consumption of hormone laden meat.
 
i take my chances on the soy.

if the health aspect interests you, there's a very good article i recommend (note mention of tamoxifen and igf-1) at http://www.vegansociety.com/content/articles/stimesmag_jul2002.html
 .  if the humane dimension does, poke around the links a little on www.milksucks.com ; don't dismiss it out of hand as radical, just read it neutrally for the value of its ideas and content.
 
fwiw, i've been a heavy soy consumer for years and never had the responses ff gets, so it may be that individual reactions just differ.