What can African American women do to decrease their chances of dying from breast cancer?
There has been an increase in the past 5 years in the number of women receiving regular breast cancer screening with clinical breast exams by their doctors and mammograms. However, African American women have fewer mammograms than Caucasian women. Researchers have shown that African American women who have regular mammograms have the same excellent chances of surviving breast cancer as all other groups of women. Mammograms detect breast cancers at a much earlier stage that breast examinations alone. These early tumors can be more easily treated and are more likely to be cured. All states and territories of the United States have programs that cover the cost of mammograms if your insurance does not. Contact the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345 to find the locations of these services in your community. New exciting studies suggest that drugs such as tamoxifen and raloxifene may prevent breast cancer in women at high risk of getting the disease, including The Study of Tamoxifen a
