Northern California Cancer Center (Culture & Treatement Choices)

Survival following early-stage breast cancer is equal for women treated with breast conserving surgery (BCS) and those who have had mastectomy. Yet, there are striking differences among ethnic groups in who gets BCS versus mastectomy. Asian women, particularly Chinese, Vietnamese, and Filipinas, diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer are two- to three-times less likely than non-Hispanic White women to have BCS and more likely to have mastectomy, and our surveillance research studies suggest that this pattern is not completely explained by sociodemographic or clinical factors.