Colon cancer survival rates are worse for blacks than whites, and that may largely be due to social and economic factors, according to a new research review. The reviewers, who work in Houston at the University of Texas Health Science Center, included Xianglin Du, MD, PhD. They note that colon cancer killed 27 per 100,000 blacks compared with 19 per 100,000 whites from 2000-2003 in the U.S. During the same period, the five-year colon cancer survival rate was almost 55% for blacks, compared with 65% for whites. Adjusting for socioeconomic factors and for colon cancer treatment erased much of the black-white race gap in colon cancer survival rates.
The reviewers conclude that closing the social and economic gaps may narrow the colon cancer survival race gap.
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