The Unequal Burden of Cancer: An Assessment of NIH Research and Programs for Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved

TABLE 2-10 Five-Year Relative Survival Rates by Selected Sites Among Racial or Ethnic Groups in the United States^a

Racial or Ethnic Group	Colon and Rectum	Lung and Bronchus	Female Breast	Cervix Uteri	All Sites
Native American	37	5	53	67	34
Black	44	11	63	63	38
Chinese	50	15	78	72	44
Filipino	41	12	72	72	46
Hawaiian	51	16	76	73	44
Japanese	58	14	85	72	51
Korean	NA^b	NA	NA	NA	NA
Vietnamese	NA	NA	NA	NA	NA
Hispanic (total)	46	11	72	69	47
White, non-Hispanic	51	12	75	68	50
^a Percentage (both sexes) surviving 5 years following cancer diagnosis; SEER program estimates are from 1978 to 1981. ^b SEER program does not calculate incidence when fewer than 25 cases are reported. SOURCE: Miller et al., (1996).

will be alive 5 years from the time of diagnosis. In contrast, 5-year survival rates among African Americans and Native Americans are considerably reduced (38 percent and 34 percent, respectively). Similar patterns are seen, for example, for breast cancer among females and cancers of the colon and rectum. The 5-year breast cancer survival rate among U.S. white women is 75 percent, whereas the rates are 63 percent among African Americans and 53 percent among Native American women. Survival rates for cancer of the colon and rectum are 51 percent among U.S. whites, 41 percent among Filipinos, and 37 percent among Native Americans. Updated survival rates (1960 to 1992), which are available only for African Americans, support the suggested picture of poor survival among ethnic minority populations.

Thus, the effort to improve survival rates appears to have been least effective for members of ethnic minority groups. This has largely been attributed to late stage at diagnosis, perhaps in part due the limited use of early-detection services and access to state-of-the-art treatment.

Other Data Sources

Information from sources other than the SEER program, such as other national databases, special collaborative reports, or the results of independent

Table of Contents

Front Matter R1-R14

Executive Summary 1-15

1 The Struggle Against Cancer 16-32

2 The Burden of Cancer Among Ethnic Minority and the Medically Underserved Populations 33-92

3 Overview of Programs of Research on Ethnic Minority and Medically Underserved Populations at the National Institutes of Health 93-153

4 Evaluation of Priority Setting and Programs of Research on Ethnic Minority and Medically Underserved Populations at the National Institutes of Health 154-186

5 Advancing State-of-the-Art Treatment and Prevention 187-229

6 Cancer Survivorship 230-245

7 Monitoring and Reporting 246-260

References 261-274

Appendix A: Methodology 275-281

Appendix B: A New Agenda for Cancer Control Research: Report of the Cancer Control Review Group 282-282

Appendix C: National Cancer Institute Health Promotion Branch Publications and Public Service Announcements 283-284

Appendix D: Survey of Ethnic Minority Researchers and of Researchers Interested in Cancer Among Ethnic Minority and Medically Underserved Groups 285-292

Appendix E: National Institutes of Health and National Cancer Institute Background Material 293-294

Appendix F: Information Provided by the National Center for Health Statistics on the Potential Reductions in Mortality from Cancer, by Ethnic Group 295-314

Committee and Staff Biographies 315-322

Index 323-338

Other Data Sources