Posted on June 7, 2021

By Jayla Burton, Program Manager

Breast cancer is foundationally a social justice issue, and it is also a racial justice issue.

When it comes to breast cancer, we are far too familiar with racial disparities in diagnosis, treatment, and mortality. Screening has been a core tenant of the breast cancer movement and is often positioned as the solution to fix breast cancer disparities. Our latest podcast episode, Addressing Disparities: Screening vs. Systemic Changeis an in-depth discussion covering the unique challenges and programmatic priorities specific to the Black, Latinx, and Asian communities of breast cancer activists.

The four featured guests on BCAction's podcast episode Addressing Disparities: Screening vs. Systemic Change

Breast cancer disparities and their impacts should be understood in a context that considers both personal identity and the inequities fostered in many of our systems and institutions. In this podcast episode, I talk with four guests to explore the landscape of breast cancer disparities, the disconnect between healthcare systems and communities of color living with and at risk of breast cancer, and the limitations of screening to address these inequities.

Our guests, Marissa Thomas, co-founder of For the Breast of Us, Darci Green, Executive Director of Latinas Contra Cancer, and Caroline Nguyen, Program Assistant at the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative represent the different experiences of Black, Asian, and Latinx populations. They’ll provide us with a window into the experiences of historically underrepresented populations, people navigating the healthcare system, making decisions about their care, and advocating for themselves and system change. Executive Director of Breast Cancer Action, Dr. Krystal Redman, discusses what actions we can take as breast cancer activists to transform outcomes.

Listen to the episode now to learn more about the variations in breast cancer experiences among different racial, ethnic, and cultural groups, and join us as we investigate the root causes of these disparities.

Thank you for joining us in the work to tackle these health inequalities, which are the result of a dynamic interaction between culture, power, economics, racism, and sexism.