Hollywood star Tyler Mane announced that he has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
A former professional wrestler, Mane appeared in several major motion pictures in the 2000s, including "X-Men," "Troy," and the Rob Zombie "Halloween" remake. Mane announced the diagnosis on social media on June 9. The American Cancer Society estimates that 1 in 755 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer.
"I have some bad news," Mane said in a video posted to
Instagram. "I start chemo today. One in 750 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, and I'm one of 'em. Because it's rarely talked about, it's usually found at later stages and has worse outcomes. I want to change that."
Mane encouraged his followers to share his video and his battle. The video then cut to Mane in a clinic receiving chemotherapy, giving the camera the middle finger and whispering "[expletive] cancer."
In the caption accompanying the video, he mentioned that only 1 percent of breast cancer diagnoses are male.
"I’ll be honest, my first reaction was to keep it secret," he wrote. "I mean it’s kind of embarrassing. But then I found out that men are more likely to be diagnosed in advance stages BECAUSE it’s not talked about and not looked for. In fact, my doctors all dismissed it and it was only because my wife pushed me to get the lump removed that I got in early. So let’s start talking about it! 1 in 755 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime and if caught early, it’s VERY treatable. Time to answer the Wake Up Call! Like, Save, Share, Comment let’s spread the word!"
According to the
American Cancer Society, about 2,670 men will be diagnosed with
breast cancer in 2026, and roughly 530 men will die from it.
Risk factors include old age, family history or gene mutations, Klinefelter syndrome, radiation exposure, heavy alcohol use, liver disease, estrogen drugs, being overweight, and testicular conditions.
During adolescence, boys and girls both have small amounts of breast tissue, comprised mainly of tube-like structures called ducts. As girls hit puberty, they develop glands called lobules that are used for lactation. Male breast tissue has ducts, but few have any lobules. Most cancers develop in the walls of the ducts; very rarely does it start in the lobules. Even rarer is cancer of the soft tissue or lymph nodes under the breast. Cancer can often metastasize into the lymph nodes or spread through the bloodstream.
Mane's Professional Career
Mane came up as a professional wrestler, first in his native Canada, then South Africa, then Japan, before landing a contract with WCW. He retired from wrestling in 1996.He began to pursue
acting and landed roles in several major films of the 2000s. He played Sabretooth, a main villain in "X-Men" in 2000 and reprised the role in 2024's "Deadpool & Wolverine." He had a small role in "Joe Dirt" in 2001, and he played the ancient Greek warrior Ajax in the epic historical movie "Troy" in 2004. He also played the classic slasher villain Michael Myers in Rob Zombie's remakes of the Halloween franchise in the late 2000s.
Other male
celebrities diagnosed with breast cancer include Richard Roundtree of the "Shaft" franchise, "The Price is Right" announcer Rod Roddy, former Massachusetts U.S. Senator Richard Brooke, KISS drummer Peter Criss, former Cleveland Browns fullback Ernie Green, and talk show host Montel Williams.
