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Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Breast Cancer Awareness Month is observed each October. The American Cancer Society co-launched the campaign in 1985. October 2025 marked its 40th anniversary.

The core story for Black women is a paradox: Black women have a 4% lower incidence of breast cancer than white women, but a 40% higher death rate from the disease. That mortality gap has held steady for a decade, according to the American Cancer Society's Breast Cancer Facts and Figures 2024-2025 report. Black women are not getting breast cancer more often. They are dying from it at far higher rates, across every stage and every subtype. The 40% survival gap is not explained by biology alone. Unequal access to screening, delays in diagnosis, differences in treatment quality, and lower rates of Medicaid expansion are documented contributors.

Two patterns make Black women's breast cancer risk particularly distinct. First, triple-negative breast cancer, the most aggressive subtype and the hardest to treat with targeted therapies, accounts for 1 in 5 breast cancer cases in Black women versus 1 in 10 in all other women combined. Second, young Black women face the sharpest disparity: among women under 50, Black women's breast cancer death rate is twice that of white women in the same age range.

October is a moment to move past pink ribbons and toward concrete action: screening appointments made, conversations had with providers about risk, and policy support for the research and care equity that the statistics demand.

The data, plainly

What you can do this month

For individuals: - Schedule a mammogram. The American Cancer Society recommends annual mammograms starting at age 40 for women at average risk. If you have a family history of breast cancer or are Black, talk to your provider about starting earlier. - Ask your provider whether you are at high enough risk to qualify for supplemental MRI screening in addition to mammography. Dense breast tissue, more common in Black women, can reduce mammogram sensitivity. - If you feel a lump or notice skin changes, nipple discharge, or unexplained pain, do not wait for your next annual visit. Ask for a prompt evaluation. - Support Black-led breast cancer organizations such as Sisters Network Inc. and Living Beyond Breast Cancer.

For providers: - Review recall and follow-up rates by race in your patient panel. Disparities in who gets called back after an abnormal mammogram are a documented quality gap. - The National Cancer Institute and the American Society of Breast Surgeons both publish clinical guidance on breast cancer disparities. Review the latest before Breast Cancer Awareness Month programming.

Resources

Sources

  1. American Cancer Society: Breast Cancer Death Rates Are Highest for Black Women Again
  2. Breast Cancer Research Foundation: Black Women and Breast Cancer Disparities
  3. ACS Breast Cancer Facts and Figures 2024-2025 (PDF)
  4. American Cancer Society: ACS 2024 Report Shows Breast Cancer Equity Gap (via AJMC)

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