Ethnic Differences in Breast Cancer Survival Due to Biology

In the United States, the likelihood of a woman being diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer and her survival after such a diagnosis varies by race and ethnicity. These differences can largely be explained by intrinsic tumor biology,  according to a study published online January 13 in JAMA.

“It has been conventional wisdom that differences in outcomes for cancer patients who are black and white may be explained by differences in patterns of care, including access to care,” said lead author Steven Narod, MD, FRCPC, from the Cancer Research Institute at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto.

“This may be true for some cancers, but for small-sized breast cancers it does not seem to be an adequate explanation.”

The team found that black women are less likely to be diagnosed with early-stage small-sized breast cancer than white women, and twice as likely to die from this form of breast cancer.