KISS drummer Peter Criss (right) img from flickr/user: hmk

In a CNN article published today, founding KISS band member and drummer Peter Criss, a man who was never afraid to wear makeup (as “catman”), has come out with his own story of beating male breast cancer, just over a year after treatment. Criss, now 63, is not embarrassed at all to share details of his own battle with breast cancer, as he says it’s important to raise awareness about the risks and chances of male breast cancer, and now is the perfect time, during National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

from the CNN story:

According to the National Cancer Institute, in 2009 an estimated 192,370 women in the United States are expected to receive a diagnosis of breast cancer and about 40,170 are expected to die of the disease. Among men, there will be an estimated 1,910 new cases and 440 deaths.

“So many people must die from this,”  Peter Criss said. “Somebody has to step up to the plate and say something to get them aware of how dangerous this is. Lots of men die: They wait, they don’t go in, they put it off.”

Criss joins a small group of men who have spoken publicly about having breast cancer. Several years ago, Richard Roundtree, the actor who played the title role in the 1970s “Shaft” films, revealed he had breast cancer.

Peter Criss, KISS drummer sought treatment for breast cancer immediately:

When Criss spotted a painful lump in his left breast after a workout in 2007, he didn’t wait.

“I go to the gym; I’ve been drumming since I was a kid. So I’m very aware of my body,” he said. “So when this happened I said, ‘Jesus, what’s this thing?’ ”

After consulting with his wife, who was battling a different type of cancer at the time, he sought medical attention. Criss had surgery in February 2008 to remove what the doctors thought was a harmless nodule. Later, he learned the nodule was actually breast cancer.

“I flipped out. I just couldn’t believe it. It’s a nightmare,” he recalled. “I was angry at everything. I couldn’t believe I had this. I was a really angry guy for a long time.”

Doctors removed the cancer in a March 2008 surgery. Because the cancer had been caught early, Criss did not need breast reconstruction or chemotherapy.

Read the entire story here.