Ethnic Minorities Less Often Diagnosed With Breast Cancer by Screening

People from minority ethnic backgrounds in England are up to a third less likely to have breast cancer diagnosed through routine screening, according to new research from the University of Surrey. The same groups are more likely to be diagnosed in an emergency setting.

The work was funded by the charity Breast Cancer Now. Researchers analysed records of 86,564 adults diagnosed between 2009 and 2019, drawn from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink and the Cancer Registration Tumour and Treatment datasets.

Screening, referral and emergency routes

People from Black, Asian and mixed backgrounds, along with people from deprived backgrounds, were up to 33% less likely to be diagnosed through screening. They were up to 31% more likely to be diagnosed after an urgent suspected cancer referral and up to 37% more likely to be diagnosed after an emergency presentation.

People with a learning disability also fared worse. Their time to diagnosis was 18% longer than for people without one, and they waited 10% longer for treatment.

Dr Rob Kerrison, associate professor of cancer care and co-lead of the cancer care expert group at Surrey, led the study. "We know that some groups of women in the UK have poorer breast cancer survival than others, but until now we have had only a limited understanding of why," he said. He added that the findings suggest inequalities in access to screening and timely treatment may be part of the explanation.

"Women from a range of disadvantaged and under-served groups were less likely to have their cancer detected through screening and often waited longer to start treatment," Kerrison said. In his words, everyone needs to be able to access screening and receive prompt treatment, regardless of background or circumstances.

Manveet Basra, associate director of public health, inclusion and awareness at Breast Cancer Now, said the analysis shows that people from marginalised groups "face inequalities at every stage of their breast cancer experience, and tragically this impacts their survival rates". The charity says it funds research that identifies inequities and works with policymakers on equal access to screening.

Earlier findings point the same way

An analysis of the NHS cancer patient experience 2022 survey by QualityWatch, a joint programme of the Nuffield Trust and the Health Foundation, found that one in five people in England need three or more GP interactions before a cancer diagnosis. For people from ethnic minority backgrounds the figure is one in three.

Research from the UK Health Security Agency has also suggested that young Black women are more likely to have aggressive breast cancer tumours, experience poorer care and have higher mortality rates, yet are significantly under-represented in clinical research.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women worldwide. It accounts for about one in four cancer cases and is one of the leading causes of death in women under 50.

Source: The Guardian