Abstract C039: Differences in breast cancer survival by race, age, and tumor estrogen receptor status

Background: Improvements in breast cancer survival can be attributed to screening programs resulting in earlier diagnosis, treatment advances, and more accessible care. However, racial disparities continue to persist. Identifying the most vulnerable populations can help strategize efforts of programs focused on improving disparities. The purpose of this study is to determine trends in breast cancer disease-specific survival (DSS) in black patients compared to white patients by age at diagnosis, year of diagnosis, and tumor estrogen receptor (ER) status. Methods: The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database was utilized to identify patients of black or white race diagnosed with stage I-III, ER-positive (+) or ER-negative (-) breast cancer between 1990 and 2005. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to determine 10-year breast cancer DSS. Changes in DSS were analyzed over the study's time period and in 4 age groups to evaluate women who were of premenopausal age (< 50 years), perimenopausal or postmenopausal and of the average age for breast cancer diagnosis (50-64 years), elderly (65-79 years), and most elderly (≥80 years). Results: The study included 634,434 white (89.8%) and 72,124 black (10.2%) women. In all age groups and years of diagnosis, white patients with ER+ or ER- disease had significantly higher DSS compared to blacks (p0.05). All black patients diagnosed in 2000-2005, independent of age and tumor receptor status, had significantly lower disease-specific survival (DSS) compared to white patients diagnosed a decade earlier in 1990-1994 (p