Knocking on the Door of Disparity

By Danielle Henry, MD

Before the end of National Minority Health Month, I am compelled to take the opportunity to talk about how a disease I’m passionate about affects black women – breast cancer. National Minority Health Month gives us another chance, outside of October, to focus on breast cancer’s impact on the black community.

After being introduced to the Sisters Network by one of my patients, I gained a greater understanding of breast cancer’s impact on the black community. During one of the events I attended, “Stop the Silence”, there were women who traveled from near and far who were currently battling breast cancer, survivors of breast cancer, loved ones of those who previously passed away from breast cancer and simply supporters coming together to raise awareness. Many admitted that cancer was a taboo topic growing up, and went on to share personal stories of struggles, triumphs, and loss due to breast cancer. As a part of the event, we also walked door to door asking to speak with the women of the household to share breast cancer facts and invite them back to the event site for free mammograms. This part of the event stood out the most, as it took an active role of going into the community instead of passively waiting for them to present to the clinic.

Below is a list of statistics shared during the walk, in addition to a few others, which resonated with me on the topic of breast cancer:

1. Among black women, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second most common cause of cancer deaths.
2. Although the incidence of breast cancer is lower in black women, they have a 42% higher mortality than white women.
3. Only 52% of breast cancers are diagnosed at a local stage in minority women.
4. Twenty-two percent of breast cancers among black women are triple negative (loss of receptors for estrogen, progesterone, her-2-neu), which behave more aggressively, have a poorer prognosis and lack targeted therapy.

I am motivated both by my experience with this grassroots event, as well as the overwhelming data that shows disparity in black women, to address and shed light on this disparity. With National Minority Health Month and this blog offering a prime opportunity to bring awareness, the rest of the months can be spent “Bridging Health Equity Across Communities”. Through the Office of Minority Health, you can find many resources for working with minority populations related to education, prevention and treatment strategies.

Resources:
www.cancer.org
https://minorityhealth.hhs.gov

#NMHM17

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Danielle Henry is a chief resident at Orlando Health General Surgery Residency Program and currently serves as the administrative chief resident. She is planning to pursue her passion with a career in breast oncology after residency. She completed her medical degree at Florida State University and undergraduate degree in Applied Physiology and Kinesiology at the University of Florida. She enjoys playing soccer, a good game of scrabble and time at the beach. She also enjoys community service projects and mentoring medical students.

Our blog is a forum for our members to speak, and as such, statements made here represent the opinions of the author and are not necessarily the opinion of the Association of Women Surgeons.