Disparity Matters, Author at Disparity Matters

Black women more likely to die from Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

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African American women with nonmetastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) had a significantly higher risk of breast-cancer mortality compared with White women, according to a study of 23,213 U.S. patients diagnosed with the cancer from 2010 to 2015. Compared with White women, African American women diagnosed with TNBC were less likely to be treated with surgery […]

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Moderate Use of Hair Relaxers Does Not Increase Breast Cancer Risk Among Black Women

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Hair relaxer use was not associated with breast cancer risk overall in 59,000 self-identified Black women enrolled in a study that began in 1995. However, the heaviest users of lye-containing products – those who used these products at least seven times a year for 15 or more years, had about a 30 percent increased risk

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Will HPV cause more anal and rectal cancers than cervical cancers in women age 50+ by 2025?

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The incidence of cervical has been declining over the past two decades, but HPV-caused anal and rectal cancers are increasing. If the current trend continues, new anal and rectal cancers will surpass cervical cancers by 2025 in women 50+. The problem, says Lori J. Pierce, MD, President of the American Society for Clinical oncology, is

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Women of color less likely to receive timely surveillance mammograms after breast cancer treatment

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Black, Hispanic, and Asian women were less likely to receive a timely surveillance mammogram after breast cancer treatment than White women, according to a review of 30 studies published between 2000 and 2019. After diagnosing early-stage breast cancer, physicians will usually develop a plan to monitor for signs the cancer has come back, which can

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Few young men getting HPV vaccine even though they’re at risk for HPV-caused cancer

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Only 16 percent of men aged 18 to 21 have received at least one dose of the Human Papilloma Vaccine, according to data from 2010-2018 health surveys. That compares with 42 percent of women of the same age. While the HPV vaccine was originally approved in 2006 to prevent cervical cancer, this was extended to

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FDA must respond to citizen petition to ban menthol cigarettes

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration must respond to a court order demanding it take a position on whether to ban menthol cigarettes. The FDA has long targeted menthol cigarettes for a regulatory crackdown amid warnings from doctors and other public health experts that the products are easier to start smoking, harder to quit and

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Women seeking help with food, shelter and unexpected expenses are often overdue for cervical cancer screening

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More than half of cervical cancer cases in the United States occur in women who have not had timely Pap smears and/or HPV tests. Women with low incomes sometimes skip Pap smears and other cancer prevention screenings because they are focused on more pressing needs such as housing, food and other necessary expenses. So, researchers

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Black women more likely than other women to be screened for breast cancer

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Black women area more likely to be screened for breast, cervical and colorectal cancers than White, Hispanic or other racial/ethnic groups of women, according to a 2018 government health survey. For breast cancer, 84 percent of Black women had been screened versus 80 percent of Hispanic women, 78 percent of White women, and 78 percent

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Black women nearly twice as likely as White women to suffer cardiac side effects from breast cancer chemotherapy

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Black women were nearly two times more likely to have cardiac side effects than white women, according to a study of women diagnosed with stage I-III HER2 positive breast cancer from 2004-2013. These disparities persisted even when adjusting for known risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity as well as for socioeconomic differences.

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endometrial cancer mortality Black women

Why Black women are twice as likely to die of endometrial cancer

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Lack of health insurance means many Black women are more likely to put off seeking medical attention and having regular preventive screenings, which may contribute to later diagnoses and surgical interventions. Black women in particular also face higher odds of being misdiagnosed even when they do seek medical care. There may also be a biological

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