Breast Cancer Risk and Mortality in Women of Latin American Origin

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most common cancer and leading cause of cancer death for Latina women in the United States. Latinos are the fastest-growing minority group in the nation, encompassing individuals from multiple countries and cultures and with a wide range of genetic ancestry influences including Indigenous American, European, African, and to a lesser extent, Asian. Breast cancer risk, characteristics, and outcomes differ between populations and among individuals in the same population group according to nationality, place of birth, and genetic ancestry, with the added intersection of socioeconomic status. Most of the observed differences are explained by barriers in access to health care, lifestyle, and health-related behaviors. However, there is evidence that underlying genetic differences might also contribute to the observed heterogeneity. This article summarizes what is known about breast cancer incidence, tumor characteristics, and survival in women of Latin American origin, with emphasis on the heterogeneous nature of this group of individuals usually identified with the categories of Hispanics or Latinos.