Good and Bad News About Breast Cancer and Black Women
Past studies have shown that breast cancer and tumors in black women are more aggressive and harder to treat, which have led to an increase of early-stage mastectomies among black women to ensure the complete removal of cancerous cells. But a new early-stage breast cancer study conducted by Yale University’s School of Medicine found that although breast cancer is more likely to return in black women (17 percent) than their white counterparts (13 percent), the numbers are small enough that a less invasive option, breast-conserving surgeries—lumpectomy followed by radiation therapy—are viable and successful options for black women. Head researcher Meena S. Moran, M.D., claimed that almost four in five African-American women have good results with this approach and urges all women to discuss breast-conserving therapy with their doctors.
