In the month dedicated to breast cancer awareness, American women received good news. A new report from the American Cancer Society found that the breast cancer mortality rate in the United States has significantly decreased over the past three decades.
The study published this week in the Cancer Journal for Clinicians discovered that, overall, the mortality rate dropped by 43% over three decades, from 1989 to 2020, translating to 460,000 fewer deaths from breast cancer during this period.
Researchers also found that the incidence of breast cancer has been slowly increasing since 2004, about 0.5% per year, primarily driven by early diagnosis of the disease.
However, when analyzing the study data by race, the results are less encouraging. Although Black women have a lower incidence rate of breast cancer compared to white women, the mortality rate in this group is 40% higher.
The ongoing racial disparity highlighted in the new report from the American Cancer Society is not surprising to experts in the field.
“The evidence is consistent that Black women receive less attention from the healthcare system at every point of ongoing breast cancer treatment, from low-quality mammograms to delays between the time of diagnosis and the start of treatment and poor-quality treatment when they are diagnosed,” said Rebecca Siegel, senior scientific director of surveillance research at the American Cancer Society and senior author of the report in an interview with CNN. “The takeaway message is that we really need to take a look at how we are treating Black women differently.”
Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an international awareness movement for breast cancer control, created in the early 1990s by the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation.
The date, celebrated annually in October, aims to share information and promote awareness about the disease; provide greater access to diagnostic and treatment services; and contribute to reducing mortality.
Source: CNN