Breast cancer disparities for African-American women are startling. According to the most recent data available, breast cancer mortality is about 40 percent higher for African-American women in the U.S. than Caucasian women. And, African-American women are often diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer when treatment options are limited, costly and the prognosis is poor. Susan G. Komen believes this is unacceptable and is working to change these outcomes.
Komen at Work in Your Community
Click on the 
icons above to find more information on the U.S cities with the greatest disparities in breast cancer mortality rate between African-American and white women.
Cities with the icons above are the U.S cities with the greatest disparities in breast cancer mortality rate between African-American and white women.
Represents Komen Affiliate service area.
Long Beach & Los Angeles, CA
Philadelphia, PA
Chicago, IL
St. Louis, MO
Atlanta, GA
Washington, DC
Virginia Beach, VA
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
Houston, TX
Memphis, TN
Each year, our presence and investment in communities leads to impact.*
>$95M**
invested in disparities research
391,886
mammograms provided
116,042
clinical breast exams
56,350
diagnostic services
28,668
financial assistance
*2013 numbers
**Cumulative investment since 1982
CANCER DISPARITIES: To achieve health equity, we must eliminate avoidable health disparities, which are differences in cancer outcomes among specific population groups, such as race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, age, disability, and education.
Committed to Reducing Breast Cancer Disparities
Komen believes that where you live should not determine whether you live - and that all women should have equal access to quality breast health care. We are committed to fixing the issue and working to bridge the gap in access to high-quality health care to reduce the rate, and, ultimately, end breast cancer disparities.
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Achieving Health Equity and Building Trust in communities where the disparities are greatest by ensuring access to high-quality screening, genetic testing, treatment, and clinical trials.
- Reducing Barriers to Quality Care through Patient Navigation by guiding women through the health care continuum: from outreach, education, risk reduction, detection, diagnosis, and treatment, through survivorship or end-of-life care.
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Empowering the Community through Advocacy by providing resources to support providers, survivors, advocates, community leaders, researchers, insurers, and policymakers to sustain local health system change.
Metropolitan Chicago Breast Cancer Task Force and Komen
One of the most promising community approaches supported by Komen is the Metropolitan Chicago Breast Cancer Task Force (the “Task Force”). Physicians, community leaders, and public health advocates across Chicago convened to form the Task Force in 2007. Komen provided $2.6 million to support the work of the Task Force, which is a collaboration of the Sinai Urban Health Institute, Avon Foundation for Women, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, National Institutes for Health, Illinois Department of Public Health, Telligen, and a host of other public and private entities.
Penny McFadden
"I had the opportunity to participate in the Beyond October program sponsored by the Metropolitan Chicago Breast Cancer Task Force. I received a free mammogram at Rush Oak Park Hospital. It had been a few years since I had a mammogram and a few years ago I had to have a biopsy. I wanted to make sure. I wanted to be proactive. When I saw the advertisement for Beyond October in my church bulletin, it was a blessing. I was very grateful and am still very grateful. Thank you to the staff at The Metropolitan Chicago Breast Cancer Task Force for making sure women like myself are staying on top of our health!"
How You Can Get Involved
Act now to preserve access to breast health services for our most vulnerable women.
Donate to Komen to support community programs that will ensure access to the same quality of services for all.