Minorities Not Given As Much Information about Survival Rates for Breast Cancer Treatments

A study by the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, appearing in the August issue of the journal Health Services Research. recently showed that nearly half of women with breast cancer were not aware of their odds of being alive after five years are similar whether they undergo mastectomy or breast conserving surgery. Women who are part of a minority group are even less likely to know this information.

Minority women were also less likely to know about relative survival rates even when researchers considered factors such as the surgeon's experience, the type of hospital, and whether patients reported talking to their surgeon about treatment options.

"These factors traditionally associated with quality care were not associated with informed decision-making or with our knowledge measures. Surgeon volume or treatment setting did not affect whether women had good knowledge of their treatment options after they had been through the process, nor did it really mediate the racial and ethnic differences we found," says study author Sarah Hawley, Ph.D., a research investigator at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center.