Breast cancer incidence rates increased rapidly in the 1980s, mainly due to increased use of mammography, which can detect breast cancers up to two years before they can be felt. Since that time, the gradual increase in breast cancer has been confined to women ages 50 and older. It is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in women, after basal and squamous cell skin cancers. Age and gender are the largest risk factors for breast cancer, with only about 1 percent of all breast cancers being diagnosed in men each year. In Arkansas, white women are diagnosed more often with breast cancer than African American women; however, African American women are more likely to die from the disease. This disparity may be due to diagnoses at a later stage for African American women or a higher frequency of more aggressive tumors.
Although Arkansas has one of the lowest mammography screening rates in the country, it has managed to stay slightly below the national death rate. The increase of mammography and improved treatments has led to a significant decrease in the death rate from breast cancer over the past 20 years. Several national organizations recommend breast cancer screening once a year for women 40 and older.
The Coalition established the following objectives for breast cancer screening and detection:
- Increase knowledge and improve attitudes of all women with regards to the importance of breast cancer screening.
- Increase the proportion of primary care providers who recommend regular mammograms to their patients.
- Increase the availability of breast cancer screening to populations facing geographic, economic or cultural barriers.
- Educate women about their risk of breast cancer and the need to return routinely for appropriate re-screening and/or diagnostic testing.