|
30 October 2007
African-American Women Suffer From More Aggressive Breast Cancers 
African-American women are diagnosed with breast cancer at a younger age and have larger tumors and more lymph node involvement than white women, report Yale School of Medicine researchers. The results were based on 2,164 Caucasian women and 207 African American women followed over a 30-year period — the largest most comprehensive study of its kind to date. "The incidence of breast cancer is actually lower in African American women compared to Caucasian women, yet their mortality rates are higher," Yale's Meena Moran said. "We were surprised. Previous reports did not show higher relapse rates in African American women after surgery to conserve breast tissue. This might be because we had so many African American patients and a longer follow-up period." Moran proposed several possible biological risk factors that need to be explored more fully; - African American women have a lower level of estrogen/progesterone receptors, which means existing anti-estrogen therapies are not effective on these tumors.
- African American women have a higher rate of "triple negative tumors," which have been associated with a worse outcome in early stage breast cancer.
- They also have a higher rate of mutation in the p53 gene, which normally acts to suppress tumors.
"In terms of outcomes after treatment," Moran said, "African American patients were found to have a significantly higher rate of relapse in the breast and lymph nodes after breast conservation treatment compared to Caucasians. We did not, however, find any differences in the rate of cancer spreading to other locations such as the lung, bone, or liver, or in the overall survival in the two groups of patients. We hope that patients and physicians will help reduce the gap in the disparities between the two populations by improving early detection/screening, better access to care and compliance with chemotherapy and radiation," she concluded. Related articles:
Study Slams Breast Cancer Follow-Up Care
Breast Cancer Strikes African-Americans Early
Grooming Products Behind African-American Breast Cancer Figures?
Across The Board Association Between Obesity And Breast Cancer Source: Yale University
Talk About This Article In The Forum...
|
