US breast cancer death rate drops 43% in three decades, but racial disparities remain

The breast cancer death rate in the United States has dropped significantly, but Black women continue to be more likely to die from the disease despite having a lower incidence of it, according to a new American Cancer Society report.   The study finds that in total, the death rate dropped by 43% within three decades, from 1989 to 2020, translating to 460,000 fewer breast cancer deaths during that time.   The researchers found that the incidence of breast cancer has risen slowly since 2004, by about 0.5% per year, driven mostly by diagnosing the disease early and more quickly at a localized stage.   In contrast, breast cancer death rates have declined steadily since their peak in 1989, the researchers found, falling 1.9% annually from 2002 to 2011 and then 1.3% annually from 2011 to 2022.   When the data were analyzed by race, Black women had a lower incidence rate of breast cancer versus White women, but the death rate was 40% higher in Black women overall.   “Death rates are declining in Black women, just like they are in almost every other group, but we’re still seeing the same gap,” said Rebecca Siegel, senior scientific director of surveillance research at the American Cancer Society and senior author of the report.   “The evidence is consistent that Black women receive short shrift in the health care system at every point of the breast cancer care continuum, from lower-quality mammography to delays between the time of diagnosis and the beginning of treatment to poor quality treatment when they are diagnosed,” Siegel said. “The take-home message is that we really need to take a hard look at how we’re treating Black women differently.”