1 out of 7 minority women lack important family history of breast cancer

Mar 23 2005

Having your doctor ask you about your family breast health history can greatly increase the chances of identifying your risk for breast cancer.

In a recent study published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, researchers found that only 26% out of 1700 women in the Greater Boston area had documentation of their family history of breast cancer. Further data showed that minority women were significantly less likely to have this information asked about or recorded than white women.

“A woman with a family history of breast cancer is at greater risk of developing breast cancer than women without relatives with breast cancer and as such, many guidelines recommend more intense breast cancer screening for women with positive family histories,” states Harvey J. Murff, MD, lead researcher for the study.

However, after studying the medical records of almost 2000 women, only 1 in 4 were found to have had this important documentation. Researchers found that “less than 1 in 7 of African-American and Hispanic women less than 40 years of age, a group in which the early identification of risk status could influence screening practice behavior, had documentation concerning familial breast cancer.”

Little research has been done to examine how family cancer histories are obtained and utilized in clinical practice. Thus, the study focused on how women were asked about their family histories and if any specific patient characteristics affected whether or not the discussion took place. As disparities were observed between minority and white women, it is suggested that minority women at increased risk for breast cancer may be at particular risk of not being identified.

Overall, the need for more attention to collecting this data is emphasized to benefit high-risk groups. Early identification can lead to receiving a mammography at an early stage or even genetic testing, and avoid discovering breast cancer at already advanced stages. The American Cancer Society suggests breast cancer screenings for women at age 30 who are at increased risk for the disease.

The lack of documentation suggests that primary care providers are infrequently inquiring about breast cancer histories with their patients. However, researchers were unable to determine whether the information was asked about and just not recorded or not inquired about at all. Additional factors that may have an impact on this discussion between patient and doctor may include brevity of patient visits or relevance to the actual ailment for which the patient is being seen.