American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) women with breast cancer have consistently lower rates of breast reconstruction after mastectomy compared to non-Hispanic White women, reports a paper in the July issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery ® , the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer. Despite an upward trend in reconstruction, AI/AN women continue to be less likely to undergo breast reconstruction.
While our findings point to some possible approaches to reducing this disparity, it will be essential to also determine Native women's opinions related to breast reconstruction." Jane Hui, MD, MS, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis Using data from the National Cancer Database, the researchers identified 1,980 AI/AN women and 414,036 non-Hispanic White women who underwent mastectomy for breast cancer between 2004 and 2017. Annual breast reconstruction rates were compared between groups, along with factors associated with decisions about reconstruction.
The two groups differed in some important characteristics. American Indian/Alaska Native women had higher rates of other medical diagnoses (comorbidity), 20% versus 12%; were more likely to have public health insurance, 49% versus 20%; and more likely to undergo single-breast (unilateral) mastectomy. Over the 13-year study period, breast reconstruction increased in both groups: from 13% to 47% for AI/AN women and from.
