Coronation Street star Jacob Roberts reveals striking transformation for emotional male breast cancer storyline after his character Kit Green was diagnosed with the rare disease

Coronation Street star Jacob Roberts has revealed the striking changes he's made to his appearance after his character Kit Green was diagnosed with breast cancer.

In heartbreaking scenes, Kit learns in an upcoming episode that he has a stage three cancer, and viewers will see him undergo treatment.

Male breast cancer is rare, accounting for less than 1 per cent of all UK yearly breast cancer cases, and Coronation Street has partnered with cancer charities Macmillan Cancer Support and Breast Cancer Now to accurately portray the storyline.

Actor Jacob has now shared that as part of his preparations to film the moving scenes, he's shaved his head to show the effects on Kit while he undergoes treatment.

He revealed the transformation during an appearance on BBC Breakfast on Thursday, alongside James Richards, a breast cancer survivor and founder of the Moobs charity.

Jacob shared on the show that prior to being given the storyline he wasn't aware that men could be diagnosed with breast cancer, and he did his own research to prepare for filming.

He said: 'I didn't know men could get it initially, I tried to do as much research as I could. 

'The research department at work, I did my own research, I just tried to get as much insight as possible really.'

Jacob also previously shared in an interview that it was his decision to shave his head, to show the impact cancer treatment could have.

He told the Radio Times: 'I was kind of a bit nervous about it, but they never told me to shave it.

'And I thought for the story, I think we need to... yeah, you know. It's nothing, you know? It's just hair at the end of the day. Let's tell the story right.'

While breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK – with 56,822 new cases diagnosed each year – female patients hugely outweigh male patients.

Research into male breast cancer is slim, but the disease is believed to be rarer in men due to their having less breast tissue and a lower lifetime exposure to the sex hormone oestrogen – which plays an important role in breast cancer growth.

Genetic factors also play a particularly important role in breast cancer in men. Around 20 per cent of men with breast cancer have a close relative – whether parent, sibling or child – with the disease.

This particularly ties into Corrie's telling of the male breast cancer storyline, as Kit first learned of his diagnosis after discovering he may carry a familial BRCA gene, following the death of his estranged aunt Celeste.

Around 10 per cent of men with breast cancer have the BRCA2 breast cancer susceptibility gene and between 1 and 2 per cent of men with the disease carry the BRCA1 gene.

Both types of BRCA mutations also increase susceptibility to prostate cancer.

Symptoms of breast cancer in men can include a lump on the chest that tends to be firm, painless and immobile.

Male breast cancer can also appear as nipple inversion, nipple discharge – which may contain streaks of blood – persistent soreness or rash around the nipple and enlarged glands in the armpit.