Role of socioeconomic status in predicting sonographically detected breast cancer compared with family history, age, or ethnicity

Abstract

To determine if socioeconomic status is another risk factor in the development and treatment of breast cancer, the records of 250 women, equally divided between those with and without breast cancer, were studied at an outpatient clinic. The frequency of sonographically detected breast cancer increased systematically with respect to age, from 0% at age <30 years to 70.5% at age ≥50 years. The frequency of detection was higher among white (non-Hispanic) women, 69.4%, compared with nonwhite (Hispanic, Black, Asian) women, 42.3%. Breast cancer detection was higher (55.3%) among the lowest income group (