Breast cancer and racial disparity between Caucasian and African American women, part 1 (BRCA-1).
Breast cancer is a commonly diagnosed malignancy and the second leading cause of cancer-related death among American women today. Despite the lower incidence of breast cancer among African American women, they are more likely to die from the disease each year than their white counterparts. We present a retrospective cohort study of the tumor registry data from electronic medical records of patients diagnosed with breast cancer at the University of Florida Health, Jacksonville from 2000 to 2005. A total of 907 patients were diagnosed with breast cancer; 445 patients with invasive breast cancer had complete medical records and were selected for this review. Much like previously published research, we found that African American patients presented with a more advanced stage and aggressive subtype of breast cancer than white patients, and were less likely to have health insurance. However, we have yet to determine if universal health care insurance can lead to improved health care access, better breast cancer awareness, and an enhanced attitude toward breast cancer screenings. Such factors would ultimately lead to an earlier diagnosis and better outcomes in both African American and white patients. We plan to investigate this critical issue in a follow-up study (BRCA-2; Breast Cancer and Racial Disparity Between Caucasian and African American Women, Part 2), which will begin a few years after the complete implementation of the universal health care law enacted by President Obama in 2010. The higher frequency of aggressive tumor subtypes in African American women warrants more attention. We suggest further research to determine whether decreasing the initial age for screening or increasing the frequency of mammograms in African American women would improve breast cancer outcomes. This study underscores the importance of identifying and preventing obstacles in routine breast cancer screening, as well as increasing breast cancer awareness.