Culture and breast cancer treatment choices
Survival following early-stage breast cancer is equal for women treated with breast conserving surgery (BCS) and those who have had mastectomy. Yet, there are striking differences among ethnic groups in who gets BCS versus mastectomy. Asian women, particularly Chinese, Vietnamese, and Filipinas, diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer are two- to three-times less likely than non-Hispanic White women to have BCS and more likely to have mastectomy, and our surveillance research studies suggest that this pattern is not completely explained by sociodemographic or clinical factors.
We are currently conducting a pilot developmental study titled "Breast Cancer Treatment Choices" to identify, though qualitative and focus group interviews with breast cancer patients, the salient factors involved in the complex decision-making process for early-stage breast cancer treatment. This study focuses, in particular, on identifying the cultural influences among Chinese, Filipina, and Vietnamese women, who have been identified through surveillance data as having the highest mastectomy rates. The information gleaned from this pilot study will be used to develop a larger future study.
NCCC Principal Investigator: Scarlett L. Gomez, Ph.D.
Funding Sources: National Cancer Institute (R21 grant), Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program
Publications:
Gomez SL, France A, Lee MM. Socioeconomic status, immigration/acculturation, and ethnic variations in breast conserving surgery, San Francisco Bay Area. Ethnicity and Disease 2004; 14:134-40.
Lin SS, Phan JC, Lin AY. Breast cancer characteristics in Vietnamese women in the San Francisco Bay Area. Western J Med 2002; 176:87-90.
Prehn AW, Topol B, Stewart S, Glaser SL, O'Connor L, West DW. Differences in treatment patterns for localized breast carcinoma among Asian/Pacific islander women. Cancer 2002; 95:2268-75.
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