CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A common test used to determine whether a breast cancer patient should get chemotherapy could be misleading treatment for some Black women, according to researchers at the University of Illinois Cancer Center.
The 21-gene recurrence score is the test most commonly used by doctors to guide their recommendations for patients with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer.
After analyzing test results and death records for more than 70,000 women from a national database, though, researchers at the University of Illinois-Chicago found the test could lead to bad medical recommendations for some Black women, especially younger breast cancer patients.
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Dr. V.K. Gadi is deputy director of the University of Illinois Cancer Center.
“When we looked at Black women in the United States, they were having worse results for all levels of stages and diagnoses,” Gadi said.
Gadi said that's because, based on the test results, some patients were told they would likely not benefit from chemo — when in actuality, they may have.
He said the UIC research raises important questions.
“Maybe we should try to redefine what the thresholds are where we say that a woman wouldn't benefit from chemotherapy, specifically for Black women, as opposed to other races or ethnicities,” said Gadi.
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