NIH Study: Breast Cancer Risk in African American Women May Have Been Underestimated

Scientists have developed a new way to determine African American women's risk for breast cancer. It's called the CARE model, and it indicates that previous methods may have underestimated black women's breast cancer risk. The CARE model is discussed in a study published in the December 2007 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

For over ten years, the standard method of gauging a woman's risk for breast cancer has been the Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool. This assessment is based on research from mostly white subjects, which limits the tool's accuracy in determining breast cancer risk for women of color.

The Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool was created by Dr. Mitchell Gail and other researchers at NIH's National Cancer Institute (NCI). Doctors use the Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool to provide women with information on their likelihood for developing breast cancer. Scientists utilize the method to select participants for breast cancer prevention research.

Responding to concerns about the tool's reliability for women of color, Gail and his colleagues designed a new model specifically for African American women. They examined data gathered through the Women's Contraceptive and Reproductive Experiences (CARE) study, sponsored by NIH's National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). Data on over 3,200 black women was included; approximately half of these had invasive breast cancer.

The researchers looked at significant breast cancer risk factors, such as age at first menstruation and the number of immediately family members with breast cancer. The latest national cancer statistics were also examined.