Are you talking to ALL of your patients about breast cancer screenings?

African American and Hispanic women have higher risk of death from breast cancer than their White counterparts.¹

 

Race and ethnicity continue to be a factor influencing mammography use according to a National Library of Medicine.² While research and studies show that annual screenings greatly reduce breast cancer deaths, 35% of women still do not get an annual mammogram and the percentage is even higher in African American and Hispanic women.

 

While African American and White women get breast cancer at about the same rate, African American women have a higher rate of death from breast cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. African American and Hispanic women are 20% more likely to be diagnosed with advanced stage breast cancer, and they have, respectively, up to 70% and 14% increased risk of death.⁴

 

A common theme stressed in all of the major breast screening guidelines has been for providers to talk with patients about mammography. But when? Knowing that younger African American and Hispanic women are already considered a “high-risk” group, the conversation can be confusing to your patient under 30.

 

Help your African American and Hispanic patients understand the importance of early screening by sharing information with them about their unique risks. We’ve included links to videos that address breast cancer screening in both African American and Hispanic women. We hope you will share them with your patients either in your waiting rooms, or by offering to play them during their visits.

 

VIDEO: Why mammograms matter for Black women

 

VIDEO: Why mammograms matter for Hispanic women

 

There are other resources available through the Center for Disease control and the American Cancer Society, to name a few. The American College of Radiology has a Talking to Patients about Breast Cancer Screening CME Toolkit that offers CME credits for completing the toolkit.

 

Talking to women about taking everyday steps to lower their risk for getting breast cancer is the first step in closing disparity gaps in care.

 

1 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaoncology/article-abstract/2775169

2 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8909641/

3 https://www.acr.org/Media-Center/ACR-News-Releases/2019/ACR-Offers-New-Talking-to-Patients-about-Breast-Cancer-Screening-CME-Toolkit

4 https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/475470

 

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