Format for Printing Statistics show that African-American women diagnosed with breast cancer are more than twice as likely to die from the disease than white women. Some researchers have suggested that this may be due to poor access to mammography and less frequent breast cancer screenings among many African-American women. In a retrospective study of 384 women diagnosed with breast cancer at the South Carolina Comprehensive Cancer Center in Columbia, South Carolina, Dr. Butler and his team investigated specific characteristics of the tumors, such as grade and hormone receptor status , according to the women's ethnicity. Both hormone receptor status and histologic grade are important when determining the most effective course of treatment for breast cancer.
Many breast cancers contain estrogen receptors within their cells.
These types of cancers are dependent on the hormone estrogen to grow and survive. In addition, determining a tumor's histologic grade helps physicians to know how aggressive a woman's cancer may be. Also, many African-American women may not benefit from drug therapies such as tamoxifen, which are designed to treat estrogen sensitive breast cancers. However, tamoxifen may not help prevent breast cancer in women likely to develop non-estrogen receptors. While the benefits of taking HRT to relieve menopausal symptoms and prevent other conditions such as osteoporosis outweigh the small increased risk of breast cancer for many women, the decision to take HRT should be made by taking into account each woman's medical situation.