Breast Care and Early Cancer Detection for African-American Women

Although breast cancer is actually less common among most African-American women than among white women, African-American women are more likely to die from this cancer. About 5,640 black women are expected to die of breast cancer this year.

Experts are unsure about the reasons for the higher death rates in African-American women with breast cancer, but one possible cause is that African-American women tend to not have mammograms or clinical breast exams, so the cancer is not detected early enough to be cured. Another possible reason is that tumors generally grow faster in African-Americans than in other groups of people.

Breast cancer affects thousands of women in the United States each year, according to the American Cancer Society:

• About 211,240 women in the United States are expected to be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in 2005.
• Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in all women in the United States.
• About 40,410 women will die from the disease this year.
• Slightly more than 2 million women in the United States have been treated for breast cancer.
• About 19,240 new cases of breast cancer in African-American women are expected this year.

Fortunately, early detection of breast cancer greatly increases the chances that a woman will survive this disease. Women who have regular breast exams (mammograms and clinical breast exams) are much more likely to detect breast cancer early, have more options for treatment and survive the disease. Convincing women to adopt breast care practices can save many lives.

Next: Risk Factors that Increase Your Chances of Getting Breast Cancer