Former police minister Jack Dempsey's battle with breast cancer

It started with a sharp pain as he hugged his children and ended with a mastectomy.

Former Queensland police minister Jack Dempsey has revealed he was diagnosed with breast cancer in October – a rarity among men.

Former police minister Jack Dempsey at the LNP campaign launch in January.Credit: Renee Melides

The cancer was successfully removed without any need for radiation or chemotherapy.

"There's the initial shock and then you just find it difficult to believe," Mr Dempsey told Fairfax Media.

"It's something, and I hate to say it, but it was a bit of an embarrassment as well.

"You feel a little bit embarrassed because you think there are so many other types of cancers – you know, 'isn't there a manly one I could get?', but it's still a serious issue and while [men getting breast cancer] is certainly a small grouping, you've got to treat it seriously and do the best you can."

The Cancer Council of Queensland estimated men made up just 0.2 per cent of breast cancer diagnoses.

As he recovered from the mastectomy, Mr Dempsey presided over the G20 leaders' summit – the biggest peacetime security operation in Australian history – and his own re-election campaign.

He lost his seat to Labor's Leanne Donaldson at the January 31 state election.

"It was a tremendously busy period," he said.

"You work as a team and you're highly motivated in those situations and once you know you've done all that you can for yourself, you just make sure you've got everything in your control covered and you just get on with the business of doing everything else.

"It helped motivate me during those times because I wanted to make sure we had the best possible G20.

"You can shed a thousand tears and ask the 'why' question a thousand times, but all you can do is get on and have a bit of hope and faith for the future."

Mr Dempsey kept his diagnosis a closely guarded secret from everybody but his close family.

Not even then-premier Campbell Newman was aware – all he knew was Mr Dempsey had a "health issue" that required a medical procedure.

Those who worked most closely with Mr Dempsey in the ministerial office also had no idea.

"I'd just had the operation before [the G20] and the typical bloke things are happening – you know, you get people tapping you on the chest saying 'hey, it's going good' – and inside I was jumping a thousand feet high," Mr Dempsey said.

"They just didn't realise what they'd tapped."

And the former police officer said he wanted his experience to serve as a reminder to men to take matters seriously.

It was an all too poignant message coming from Mr Dempsey, who lost his brother, Pat, to brain cancer last February.

"For me, I have my best health back now and a peace of mind as well and that's why, if there are any early indications, a different sensation or a change in colour, you've got to get in and see your local GP because it might be the difference between life and death," Mr Dempsey said.

Since his election defeat last month, Mr Dempsey has been spending time with his family in Bundaberg and was still unsure about where the next chapter of his life would take him.

"Whatever I get in to I'll do it with a great deal of passion and enthusiasm and get on with whatever job it is, whether it be post hole digging or something in administration," he said.

"Everyone else on a daily basis goes through these things and it's about grasping the opportunities when they come your way."

But a return to politics also remained a distinct possibility.

"Three years is a long way away," Mr Dempsey said.

"For me it's always been a privilege and if I ever got the opportunity again I'd grab it with both hands."