Younger U.S. Women of Color Face Rising Breast Cancer Deaths

Follow Drugslib on

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com

via HealthDay

WEDNESDAY, May 27, 2026 — Younger women of color have a higher risk of dying from breast cancer in the United States, a new study has found.

Breast cancer deaths, once concentrated mostly among older women, are now claiming younger women more often, researchers recently reported in the journal npj Breast Cancer.

Survival improved substantially among older women over time, but younger women did not show the same improvement, researchers found.

“Rising mortality among younger women alongside improved survival in older women shows how breast cancer risk is shifting,” said senior researcher Stephen Wong, chair in biomedical engineering at Houston Methodist in Texas.

For the new study, researchers analyzed national data from 1975 to 2022 among more than 668,000 women with breast cancer.

Aside from skin cancers, breast cancer is the most common cancer in U.S. women, researchers said in background notes. It accounts for about 1 in 3 new female cancers each year, and is the second-leading cause of cancer death in women after lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society.

Results showed that young Black women with triple-negative breast cancer – a more aggressive form of the disease – remained the highest-risk group.

However, researchers also found increased death risk among Hispanic and Asian women under 50, particularly those with triple-negative breast cancers.

“Importantly, we found that Asian women under 50 experience poorer outcomes and face elevated risk of mortality than previously recorded,” Wong said in a news release.

The results show that experts need to adopt a more nuanced approach when looking at breast cancer disparities, researchers said.

“Age, race and tumor type should not be treated as separate issues as they interact to drive these disparities,” said lead investigator Lin Wang, a research fellow in the Wong Laboratory at Houston Methodist. “When we look at them together, we uncover risks that would otherwise remain hidden.”

Sources

  • Houston Methodist, news release, May 19, 2026

    • Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

    Source: HealthDay

    Posted : 2026-05-27 22:29

    Read more

    Disclaimer

    Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Drugslib.com is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Drugslib.com information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Drugslib.com does not warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Drugslib.com's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. Drugslib.com's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners.

    The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. Drugslib.com does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Drugslib.com provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.

    Popular Keywords