Women who have typically undergo a non-invasive procedure — a transvaginal ultrasound — to look for signs of uterine cancer. But research suggests that test misses far more cancers in Black women compared to white women. Black people with uteruses are more likely to develop endometrial cancer, and recent studies suggest that may be a factor.
They're also , making early detection all the more crucial. (Endometrial cancer is a type of uterine cancer, the explains, although the terms are often used interchangeably.) But the current guidelines that doctors and radiologists use to interpret transvaginal ultrasounds simply aren't as effective for this group, experts say, meaning the test misses signs of cancer in Black women.
That may be leading to delayed diagnoses among Black women — who are already more likely to develop aggressive forms of endometrial cancer. "One thing is clear across the board: Unfortunately, Black women are more likely to die of endometrial cancer," Dr. Onyinye D.
Balogun, radiation oncologist at NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, tells TODAY.com. White women with endometrial cancer have a five-year survival rate of 84%, she says, but the same figure for Black women is only 62%.
That trend persists even when controlling for access to health care and insurance coverage, Dr. Kemi Doll, gynecologic oncologist and associate professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Washington, tells TODAY.com.
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