Study Looks At Racial Disparities In Breast Cancer Testing

KYW's Medical Reports Sponsored By Independence Blue Cross

By Dr. Brian McDonough, Medical Editor

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Yet another study looking at racial disparities in health care. This study is from Tampa, Florida and conducted at the Moiffit Cancer Center.

What the researchers found is black women were significantly less likely than whites or Hispanics to get tested for the BRCA mutations that confer a markedly higher lifetime risk of both breast and ovarian cancer.

In addition, once tested, they were less likely to take advantage of some of the available risk-management strategies.

This was not a small study. It involved over 1600 women.

But the point is a key one in health care.

We need to make certain that screening and treatment plans are equally provided throughout all groups of people and realize there are different challenges in different groups that need to be addressed whether it is financial, language barriers or even a lack of trust in the healthcare system.