Breast density is lower in African American women

By April Clarkson, May 8th, 2013 | Health | 0 Comments

There are important differences in the density of breast tissue between ethnic groups, says a new report.
African American women are less likely to get breast cancer than white women, but when they do it is found later and is more aggressive. So the outcome for this group is relatively poor. The reason for this ethnic difference remains unknown. Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital wondered if this might be related to ethnic differences in the density of breast tissue.

Dense breast tissue is more likely to conceal a tumor. The team looked at mammograms from a group of 769 women and found that breast tissue density is significantly lower for African American women compared to Latin women or Caucasian women. This suggests that breast tissue density is not a factor in late diagnosis of breast cancer in African American women. If anything, it should be easier to detect breast cancer in this group. So other factors must contribute to the tendency of breast cancer in African American women to present at a later stage.