This Male Chef Had Breast Cancer At 26. Here's What He Wants Everyone To Know

Less than 1% of men get breast cancer. Here's what Peter Botros wants everyone to take away from his experience.

In 2012, doctors diagnosed 26-year-old Staten Island mortgage banker Peter Botros with breast cancer. For an unknown reason, the borough has a higher rate per capita of cancer than the rest of the state. When Botros was 14 years old, his mother died from breast cancer. His business partners, Phil Farinacci and Marc Zurlo, also lost their mothers to cancer. Less than 1% of men get breast cancer, and those who do are typically 50 and over. According to the CDC, 1 out of 100 breast cancer diagnoses are found in men.

After having a bilateral mastectomy, Botros decided to quit his job and follow his passion of becoming a chef. Under the Bread and Butter Hospitality imprint, he co-owns several Staten Island restaurants including Violette’s Cellar (named after his mother), Sally’s Southern (named after Farinacci’s mother), Sofia’s Taqueria and The Stone House at Clove Lakes. Botros gets mammograms every six months and (knock on wood) has been cancer-free for a decade. For Voices In Food, Botros talked to Garin Pirnia about overcoming cancer, why he kept his diagnosis from his family and his unrelenting drive for success.