Source: Steve Tokar, UCSF News Services
March 11, 2008

Wealthier Women Get More Breast Cancer Screenings, Regardless of Benefit

Among women 65 and older, wealthy women in poor health are more likely to receive screening mammography for breast cancer even when they are unlikely to benefit from the test, while poor women in good health are less likely to receive screening mammography even when they are likely to benefit. The results are in a study led by researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center.

All of the women in the study were on Medicare, which would minimize cost as a potential barrier to screening, says lead author Brie A. Williams, MD, a staff physician at SFVAMC and an assistant professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.

While the study did not investigate reasons for the disparity, Williams says that wealthier women may be more likely to request mammograms and to have fewer financial and time barriers in getting to mammography appointments. Regardless, she says, "Wealth is associated with more screening, whether you are healthy or unhealthy."

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