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Endocrinological Disorders

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Radiation Therapy of Benign Diseases

Part of the book series: Medical Radiology ((Med Radiol Radiat Oncol))

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Abstract

Gynecomastia is the benign proliferation of glandular tissue affecting more than half of men to some degree throughout their lives (Niewoehner and Nuttal 1984). The etiology is multifactorial; however, it involves a decrease in systemic androgens, increase in estrogen, or an enhanced tissue estrogen sensitivity (Georgiadis et al. 1994). Hormonal imbalances may be secondary to systemic illnesses, hypogonadism, diet, lifestyle choices, or certain medications; in all circumstances, treatment begins with conservative approaches aimed at addressing the underlying pathology with lifestyle modifications, consultation with an endocrinologist, and assessment of current medications (Di Lorenzo et al. 2005). Patients with recalcitrant disease may offer a variety of invasive approaches; more localized cases are amenable to liposuction, while for true symptomatic gynecomastia, surgery is accepted as a standard of care (Fruhstorfer and Malata 2003). While severe cases may require full mastectomies with free nipple grafts, this option is often reserved for the highest grades given scar burden and risk of nipple loss (Johnson and Murad 2009). In patients who are not surgical candidates, or who are placed on DES or feminizing hormones, radiation therapy can play a role in prevention or treatment. With the changing landscape of hormonal therapy for prostate cancer, radiotherapy is now less commonly used in these indications.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Plastic Surgery, McGill University Health Center, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Tyler Safran & Daniel Juneau

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  1. Tyler Safran
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  2. Daniel Juneau
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Correspondence to Tyler Safran .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiation Oncology, Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada

    David Roberge

  2. Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford Medicine, Palo Alto, CA, USA

    Sarah S. Donaldson

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Safran, T., Juneau, D. (2023). Endocrinological Disorders. In: Roberge, D., Donaldson, S.S. (eds) Radiation Therapy of Benign Diseases. Medical Radiology(). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/174_2022_372

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/174_2022_372

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-35517-2

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