Black Women Develop Cancer Earlier Than White Women, Says U.K. Study

Black women develop breast cancer 20 years earlier than white women, a study by United Kingdom researchers said on Thursday.

The researchers found that the average age for black patients to be diagnosed with breast cancer was 46, compared to 67 for white females.

The study involved 102 black British women and 191 white females diagnosed with breast cancer at Homerton University Hospital in Hackney, East London, between 2004 and 2007.

The findings suggest that tumors in the younger black patients were more likely to be aggressive, and higher proportions were less likely to respond to newer types targeted treatments like Herceptin.

“If results are confirmed in larger studies, the findings could have implications for diagnosis, screening and treatment of black patients”, said Rebecca Bowen, member of the research team.

She said that the team is now stepping up side-findings to find out why the tumors are so different.

Source African Press Agency

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