The American Lung Association finds that African Americans are 16% less likely to be diagnosed with lung cancer early, 19% less likely to receive surgical treatment, and 7% more likely to not receive any treatment than are white Americans. Latinos, Asian Americans, and Indigenous communities also face screening and treatment disparities.
Why don’t people from minority groups get equal treatment when it comes to lung cancer screening and care? “There are many contributing factors to racial disparity,” says Dr. Umit Tapan, oncologist at Boston Medical Center and assistant professor of medicine at the Boston University School of Medicine. “The major factor is access to health care.”
See “Black Americans Don’t Get Screened or Treated for Lung Cancer at Same Rates as White Americans: Here’s Why, & What We Can Do About It” by Stephanie Watson on the Survivornet website (March 31, 2021)
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