To evaluate the value of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in the diagnosis of male breast masses.

A retrospective study was performed on the medical records of 6 male patients with breast masses diagnosed at the Affiliated Hangzhou Chest Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine from January 2014 to October 2020. All patients were finally diagnosed by pathological results.

All 6 cases of male breast masses were unilateral. Pathology confirmed 3 cases of invasive ductal carcinoma and 3 cases of male breast hyperplasia. Convention ultrasound showed that all the 6 breast masses were hypoechoic. Blood flow signals can be detected in 3 cases of breast cancer, including 2 cases with coarse twisted blood vessels and 1 case with multiple microcalcifications in breast cancer. No microcalcification was found in 1 of 3 cases of breast hyperplasia. Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography revealed that 3 cases of male breast cancer showed uneven enhancement and perfusion defect, but breast hyperplasia did not have this characteristic. Three cases of breast cancer and two cases of breast hyperplasia had expanded enhancement range on contrast-enhanced ultrasound compared to the lesion range detected by conventional ultrasound, while the enhancement range of 1 case of breast hyperplasia was unclear.

Male breast hyperplasia and male breast cancer have different contrast characteristics. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound features such as uneven enhancement and perfusion defect show potential diagnostic value for male breast cancer, which can provide more diagnostic information for clinicians.