Breast and cervical cancer mortality rates along the U.S. - Mexico border

Background: Breast and cervical cancer are of significant concern in the border region. Two of the U.S. Mexico Border Health Commission's Healthy Border 2010 objectives directly address the reduction of female breast cancer and the cervical cancer death rates.

Methods: Data is presented from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) and age-adjusted to the U.S. 2000 standard population. Rates were compared for the four border states and counties by age and race.

Results: NCHS 2004 mortality data show the death rate for breast cancer for the U.S.-Mexico border states was lower than the national rate of 24.5. Among the border states, Texas had the highest mortality rate (23.5), followed by California (23.3), New Mexico (22.9) and Arizona (21.9). Although the incidence of breast cancer is lower for Hispanic women in comparison to other races, Hispanic women present with more advanced disease when diagnosed and have worse outcomes than other ethnic groups. Data provided by NCHS for 2004 showed the age-adjusted mortality rate for cervical cancer was highest for the state of Texas (3.4), followed by New Mexico (2.7), California (2.3), and Arizona (2.2). Rates were higher for Hispanics than for non-Hispanic whites in the border region, with Arizona having the highest rates of 4.8 for Hispanics and 1.6 for non-Hispanic whites, followed by New Mexico with the next highest (4.2 for Hispanics and 1.9 for non-Hispanic whites) and Texas (4.1 for Hispanics and 2.8 for non-Hispanic whites).

Conclusions: Progress in reducing breast and cervical cancer mortality in the U.S.-Mexico border region should focus on improving early cancer detection through mammography, Pap, and colorectal cancer screening tests. Moreover, public health education campaigns should target border populations as well as a research agenda that includes participation by ethnic minority groups.