Gotten Gyno from Gaining BF Quickly?

Training Bodybuilding
1

I know the whole gyno thing really gets played out these boards but for a good reason, its a distressing topic! I’ve read the gyno sticky, and some other threads but still want to ask this specific question.

I’d like to know if anyone here has developed gyno as an apparent result of gaining body fat, specifically while bulking. I don’t mean pseudo- gyno, where you get man boobs, but actually getting a hard lump in the areola.

This happened to me about 3 weeks ago. My areola got tender, then a small lump formed. I went to my GP and he said he thought it was a cyst and proceeded to try and pop it! He gave me an antibiotic and said there could be an infection in there, so I took it and its gotten considerably worse since then. It’s a very feelable lump when I run my hand down my chest and over the areola/ nipple, or when I do a front double bi, the areola and the surrounding area is noticeably extended. The other side was fairly normal until about a week ago, when I felt a touch of tenderness and a very small lump in the areola.

I’ve never touched anabolics or hormone supplements but I have been aggressively bulking since July. I’ve gained about 35 pounds in 7 months. I’d estimate my body fat to be somewhere between 25-30%. I’ve been taking 3-5 Rez-V a day but it doesn’t seem to do anything. I was planning on cutting shortly after New Years before this even happened. I’m going to see where it stands after a couple months of cutting before taking further action. If its still there or getting a lot worse in the mean time or afterward, I guess the only choice I have is to shell out the bucks and see an endocrinologist. I don’t have any noticeable lumps on my testicles.

Does anyone have any thoughts, comments, or suggestions other than take letro/ nolva?

Thanks and sorry for another gyno thread.

2

If your doctor felt it was an infection and even prescribed you antibiotics yet it got worse, why wouldn’t you go back to the doctor immediately and tell him it got worse so he could give you a different antibiotic???!

If you are prone to gain more fat in your chest, then if you get fatter, obviously more fat will be there. Unilateral gyno formation is NOT a result of gaining weight and you still haven’t explained why you ignored the doctor.

Gyno isn’t an infection. If you have an infection, then either deal with it or get a second opinion.

Why come here asking what to do?

I treat patients daily and I still wouldn’t be able to give you any specific advice BECAUSE THIS IS THE INTERNET. Your doctor was looking straight at you and came to a conclusion. You either trust his decision or you go to another doctor.

3

You either have the stupidest doctor in the world, or you don’t have gyno. If you’re pretty sure it’s not the first, then as Professor X says, go back and tell him it is getting worse. If you suspect him to be an idiot, then really you should see another doctor immediately.

4

[quote]Professor X wrote:
If your doctor felt it was an infection and even prescribed you antibiotics yet it got worse, why wouldn’t you go back to the doctor immediately and tell him it got worse so he could give you a different antibiotic???!
[/quote]

I went on vacation over Christmas, and he told me to take the medication in its entirety before reporting back to him when I returned. I still had in the back of my mind that it was gyno, so I wouldn’t have been very interested in taking another antibiotic. I don’t think my doctor is very familiar with non pubertal gyno because he said that it happens in puberty and that its not asymmetrical. When he said it doesn’t happen on one side, it kinda raised an eye brow because I’ve seen pictures of that.

Its not the subcutaneous fat formation around my chest that has me alarmed… Its that a hard, tender, circular lump is formed in my left areola. For some reason I was under the impression that when one becomes a good bit fatter, the body’s hormones get a bit out of wack. I’m just trying to find an explanation as to why this happened.

Not really sure what you mean by ignoring the doctor.

[quote]Gyno isn’t an infection. If you have an infection, then either deal with it or get a second opinion.

Why come here asking what to do?

I treat patients daily and I still wouldn’t be able to give you any specific advice BECAUSE THIS IS THE INTERNET. Your doctor was looking straight at you and came to a conclusion. You either trust his decision or you go to another doctor.[/quote]

I don’t think I have an infection. The antibiotic didn’t help anything, and now my right areola is getting tender.

I came here to ask a bodybuilding population if anyone has ever formed gyno as a result of gaining excess body fat. I guess I got my answer from you, “Unilateral gyno formation is NOT a result of gaining weight”. I also wanted to know if cutting fat would help the actual gyno. Obviously cutting will decrease subcutaneous fat around the chest, but will the lump in my areola possibly shrink?

Thanks for your help thus far.

5

[quote]Bill Roberts wrote:
You either have the stupidest doctor in the world, or you don’t have gyno. If you’re pretty sure it’s not the first, then as Professor X says, go back and tell him it is getting worse. If you suspect him to be an idiot, then really you should see another doctor immediately.[/quote]

I told him its gotten worse, and that my right areola was getting tender. He agreed that it sounded like gyno and offered to find an endocrinologist. I’m trying to find a good endocrinologist in my area. Thanks for the help.

6

[quote]Dolce wrote:

[quote]Professor X wrote:
If your doctor felt it was an infection and even prescribed you antibiotics yet it got worse, why wouldn’t you go back to the doctor immediately and tell him it got worse so he could give you a different antibiotic???!
[/quote]

I went on vacation over Christmas, and he told me to take the medication in its entirety before reporting back to him when I returned. I still had in the back of my mind that it was gyno, so I wouldn’t have been very interested in taking another antibiotic. I don’t think my doctor is very familiar with non pubertal gyno because he said that it happens in puberty and that its not asymmetrical. When he said it doesn’t happen on one side, it kinda raised an eye brow because I’ve seen pictures of that.

Its not the subcutaneous fat formation around my chest that has me alarmed… Its that a hard, tender, circular lump is formed in my left areola. For some reason I was under the impression that when one becomes a good bit fatter, the body’s hormones get a bit out of wack. I’m just trying to find an explanation as to why this happened.

Not really sure what you mean by ignoring the doctor.

[quote]Gyno isn’t an infection. If you have an infection, then either deal with it or get a second opinion.

Why come here asking what to do?

I treat patients daily and I still wouldn’t be able to give you any specific advice BECAUSE THIS IS THE INTERNET. Your doctor was looking straight at you and came to a conclusion. You either trust his decision or you go to another doctor.[/quote]

I don’t think I have an infection. The antibiotic didn’t help anything, and now my right areola is getting tender.

I came here to ask a bodybuilding population if anyone has ever formed gyno as a result of gaining excess body fat. I guess I got my answer from you, “Unilateral gyno formation is NOT a result of gaining weight”. I also wanted to know if cutting fat would help the actual gyno. Obviously cutting will decrease subcutaneous fat around the chest, but will the lump in my areola possibly shrink?

Thanks for your help thus far.
[/quote]

No. Gyno that has already formed is only taken care of through surgery. Simply gaining weight does NOT throw your hormones out of whack like you were led to believe. These types of statements are often touted by personal trainers who try to make it seem as if your body acts completely different simply because you gained 5% body fat. That is simply not true as your body is much more complex than that and many of these personal trainers are purposely confusing MORBID OBESITY with anyone who gains any weight at all.

Also, yes, your doctor is wrong about it forming unilaterally in some people. The left side is the most common occurrence.

I am now confused as to how a doctor confused real gynecomastia with an infection.

My advice is to find a new doctor or at least keep that appt with the specialist.

7

My comment on it being either the stupidest doctor in the world, or not gyno, was based on your statement that he had thought that it was a cyst that he wanted to pop.

I cannot vaguely see how a doctor of the slightest intelligence and knowledge could come to this idea on being presented with gyno.

Now I have absolutely no idea if he is an idiot, or if in fact he was presented with something that on physical examination clearly is not gyno.

But it has to be one or the other.

Also, as Prof X says, there is not going to be any great hormonal change. Your estrogen levels might increase slightly but unless we’re talking about going from lean condition to morbidly obese, triggering gyno doesn’t make much sense.

8

I think the gyno was really in the beginning stages when I saw him. When I went to him, it felt like just a pea-sized lump right in the bottom of my areola… So I can see why he thought it was a cyst. Since then, its progressed with the largest mass coming at the top but just about full circle (hollow at the nipple) of hardened tissue.

I’m not sure but maybe the trauma he inflicted on it when he tried to pop it caused it to get worse or maybe the antibiotic. I read on the internet that antibiotics can worsen gyno. Who knows though. I know all this doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things.

9

Want to give a quick update on this situation. I’ve gotten a few PM’s in the past, so I’d thought I’d let people know where I stand.

It’s been about 3 months since the last time I posted. It took me 2 months to get an appointment with a general endocrinologist (booked up) and I still have another appointment with an endocrinologist who specializes in male hormonal disorders later this month however I may cancel this one.

My gyno has changed a little bit. My left side seems to have stabilized and is no longer tender. However my right is still tender, and has been growing since January. Its almost the same size as the left, but the lump on the right side is more superficial than the left (about a quarter in diameter, hard lump). This new growth has really got me crazy in the head. I feel very self conscious about wearing any shirt that’s thin. Unfortunately this includes a lot of my favorite tops, including plain white t-shirts.

I started cutting at the end of January and have lost about 15 pounds of fat. It sucks that this actually has made my gyno more visible.

Anyway, endo called me today and told me my labs came back normal (go figure). I asked for a copy and should be receiving a fax tomorrow. She prescribed me Nolvadex, which I’m supposed to take 10mg’s twice per day. She said that since the gyno is fairly recent, it could help shrink the tissue. If it doesn’t shrink she said I would probably have to get surgery. I was under the impression that I’d be getting the surgery all along, but I’m really hoping that nolva helps. I’ve read a lot of stuff that says that nolva doesn’t do anything if its already formed, but I’ve also read that it has helped some people shrink their gyno if its fairly recent (within a year). I asked her about rebound after nolva and she said it shouldn’t be an issue.

That’s my update. Death to gyno.

10

I have had Gyno, and had surgery to have it corrected, I was born with it and suffered a long time with it before I dealt with it (all at my own expense)
Firstly, if you have/ had an existing case of gyno, and were prescribed medication, certain ‘meds’ can effect hormones and cause gyno or make existing cases worse. Doctors will not prescribe AI or SERM to combat these effects they will just refer you to an endocrinologist and let things get worse then treat the end result, as far as they are concerned its not life threatening.
When you have Gyno you basically have breasts, as you bulked and gained fat your gyno will have got worse/flared up in direct proportion with your levels of bodyfat. This is why girls boobs get bigger when they put on weight.

The nolvadex will minimize the gyno, then it will return to its previous size on discontinuation of use, so she is wasting time and money, to prevent estrogen rebound (theres no way of knowing whether it will effect you until you discontinue use, though its pretty uncommon) you need to taper off the nolvadex over a month, how long is she putting you on nolvadex for?
The only way to treat gyno is with surgery I’m afraid, not cheap and not fun.
Good luck…