Racial Disparity Has Widened in Breast Cancer Deaths

The executive vice president of the American Cancer Society, Otis Brawley revealed that black women were more likely to die of breast cancer compared to white women and this disparity has been growing wider since 1981. Speaking at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Brawley said that while the overall number of deaths due to cancers has declined, there are still significant gaps that remain in providing proper healthcare to all, pointing out that two thirds of African-American women and three quarters of Latina women do not get optimal breast cancer care compared to just one fifth for white women.

African-American men and women were also more likely to die of colorectal cancer, Brawley said, adding that a significant portion of healthcare spending is not being done wisely and underlined the importance of education in doing away with the treatment disparities.

Source-Medindia