Morehouse Study Explains Why Blacks at Greater Risk of Dying from Breast Cancer

has provided new research into why African-American women are at greater risk of developing more aggressive and difficult-to-treat forms of breast cancer. 

Conducted by Veena N. Rao, Ph.D., co-director of the school's Cancer Biology Program, the research provides the empirical evidence for what many long thought to be true.

Rao’s research, published earlier this year in in Volume 226, Issue 12, of the Journal of Cellular Physiology, reveals why young African-American women with triple negative breast cancers who have cytoplasmic mislocalization of BRCA1 proteins often develop BRCA1-associated hereditary and sporadic breast cancers.

The function of the BRCA genes is to repair cell damage and keep breast cells growing normally. But when these genes contain abnormalities or mutations that are passed from generation to generation, the genes do not function normally and breast cancer risk increases.

While white women are slightly more likely to get breast cancer, African-American women are more likely to develop aggressive breast cancers with lesser-known treatments and more likely to die from the disease, according to the American Cancer Society. Breast cancer is the second most common cause of cancer-related death among African-American women. The American Cancer Society estimated more than 6,000 African-American women will die of breast cancer in 2011.

Valerie Montgomery Rice, M.D., dean and executive vice president of Morehouse School of Medicine, said Rao's research is advancing understanding of why African-American women are at greater risk of developing more aggressive and difficult-to-treat forms of breast cancer.

“Dr. Rao’s discovery is in line with our mission to better understand health inequities and developing a cure,” Rice said.

Following the discovery of the breast cancer gene in 1994, researchers have come a long way in unlocking how various forms of breast cancer develop and creating targeted treatment therapies. 

Rao has focused on health disparities research and received numerous recognitions for her work including the 2005 Science Spectrum Emerald Honors Senior Investigator Award, the 2006 Science Spectrum Trail Blazer Award, the 2007 Women of Color in Technology Research Leadership Award and the 2008 North American Konkani Association Outstanding Achievement in Science Award.

Other researchers participating in this study include Shyam P. Reddy, Ph.D., professor and co-director of the Cancer Biology Program and Georgia Cancer Coalition Distinguished Cancer Scholar; Qin Yulong, M.D., PhD; Jiang Xu, M.D., Kartik Aysola, B.S; Nurjahan Begum, M.D., PhD; and Yuli Chai, M.D., William E. Grizzle, M.D., and Edward E. Partridge, M.D., director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Alabama.

This work was funded by Georgia Cancer Coalition Distinguished Cancer Scholar Award, NIH U54, RCMI, ACTSI and ING Foundation. For more information on research and scientific discoveries at Morehouse School of Medicine, visit www.msm.edu.