How male breast cancer survivor Michael Landesberg, of Plainview, is spreading the word and giving back

Michael Landesberg was having a conversation with a good friend, who happened to be a doctor, when Landesberg mentioned he felt a lump near his nipple.

 "My doctor friend told me to get it checked out," he recalled.

This was 4½ years ago, during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. He soon learned he had breast cancer.

"It was really tough during COVID because at the time no one wanted to take me," he said. "They said it was elective."

He remembered thinking at the time, "Elective? I have a year to live if I don't have surgery and you tell me it's elective?"

Fortunately, Landesberg, 50, who lives in Plainview with his wife, Jamie, and teenage son, Sean, said Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center took him on as a patient.

"I had a mastectomy on May 22, 2020. On May 23, I was discharged from the hospital," he recalled. "And then, close to a year following, I was on chemotherapy and targeted therapy and medication."

Landesberg also learned after the diagnosis that he had the BRCA2 and Chek2 gene mutations that increased his risk of breast cancer. He urged his sister to get tested and in 2023, she learned she had both gene mutations, and was found at the time to have an early stage of breast cancer. 

"It took time for me to get strong," Landesberg said. "Chemo beats you up. Once I finally got well and I was stronger," he said he began thinking about how he could "give back," noting the many people who "helped me through my journey."

To that end, Landesberg was set to host his second annual Breast Cancer Awareness Fundraiser Monday at Jackson Hall American Bar & Grille in East Islip, where he is general manager and executive chef.

"After I got better and got well and I started working again, I wanted to help raise awareness and give back," Landesberg said in an interview at the eatery Monday morning as he and several volunteers began getting ready for the fundraiser.

Landesberg said 100% of the fundraising proceeds will be donated to two organizations: the West Islip Breast Cancer Coalition for Long Island and the Male Breast Cancer Global Alliance. He said last year's fundraiser brought in just over $26,000.

"We hope to double it this year," he said.

Even before the event, he said donations totaling $12,000 had already come in from sales of raffle tickets and other contributions.

The pink shirts he and his volunteers wore, which sported the phrase "All Boobs Matter," are a nod to the realization that both men and women can get breast cancer. The two letter "Os" were depicted with the breast cancer ribbon symbols, one pink and one blue.

"I want to raise awareness for both," Landesberg said.

Carlos Rivera, one of Landesberg's oldest friends, who was a fundraiser volunteer, said when his buddy was diagnosed, "I honestly didn't believe it was happening ... We were all in shock." Rivera continued, "Honestly, I plead ignorance, I didn't even know men really got it."

Rivera said he later learned that it happens "to a lot of men," prompting him to get checked by a physician. "I wasn't [at] a high risk like [Landesberg] ... But you never know." Rivera said, "Men should check themselves as regular as women," he said of breast self-examinations.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes on its website that although it is rare, men do get breast cancer, accounting for "about 1 out of every 100 breast cancers diagnosed in the United States." Further, the CDC web posting says that in 2017 "there were about 2,300 new cases of male breast cancer and 500 deaths."

Cheri Ambrose, founder and president of the Male Breast Cancer Global Alliance, based in East Hanover, New Jersey, said in an interview at the restaurant that in 2024 "approximately 2,790 men will be diagnosed. Out of that number, 530 are expected to die from the disease." She added. "The mortality rate for men is 19% higher than women ... That means that men don't know to look for the disease. When they present with a problem, it's advanced."

Ambrose said the alliance website has a self-exam card for men that is downloadable, and outlines signs and symptoms of breast cancer in men, such as a lump or thickening in or near the breast or underarm area; change in the shape and size of the breast; or discharge from the nipple. 

Ambrose said Landesberg's fundraiser and decision to donate to her organization was "amazing." Further, "Just the fact that by men like Michael telling their story is giving other men the opportunity and giving them the courage to come forward. And it's also helping them to understand they need to watch out for this as well."

By Olivia Winslow

olivia.winslow@newsday.com@newsollie