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TUESDAY, Sept. 25, 2018 (HealthDay News) – Black women are more likely than white women to skip important treatments for hormone breast cancer, according to a new study.
The authors of the study explained that endocrine therapy is used to add, block or eliminate natural hormones such as estrogen and progesterone, which trigger certain types of breast cancer. Previous studies have shown that 10 years of endocrine treatment reduces the risk of recurrence.
"This study provides evidence in a large, racially diverse cohort study that black women with hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer encounter unique barriers to the observance of endocrine therapy," said the report. author of the study Stephanie Wheeler.
This can lead to poorer results, she added.
In the United States, even though black women are less likely to develop breast cancer than white women, they are 40% more likely to die of breast cancer, the researchers noted.
For the study, researchers examined data on 1,280 women who reported receiving endocrine therapy. Almost half were black.
Overall, 24% of black women reported not taking their endocrine drugs as often as they should. This was true for only 16% of white patients.
In addition, 14% of black women reported not taking their pills daily, compared to 5% of whites. Younger women, Medicaid women and those earning less than $ 50,000 a year were also less likely to take their pills as often as they should.
The reasons varied, according to the study in the September 20 issue of Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
More than a quarter of black women reported having difficulty following their treatment plan, compared to 14% of white women.
More blacks than whites said they forgot to take their medication while traveling. More and more black women have also reported reducing their pills to cut costs or forget to take their medications.
In addition, the study reveals that side effects resulted in a quarter of black women, but only 16% of white women.
"These data are important," Wheeler said in a press release. They highlighted the different ways in which women with breast cancer can achieve better results, she added.
More information
US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have more information on health disparities related to cancer.
SOURCE: Oxford University Press, press release, September 20, 2018
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