Severe lack of research on cancer in Black communities in Canada: study

Research and data on how cancer affects Black communities in Canada are severely lacking, according to a new study from the University of Ottawa’s Interdisciplinary Centre for Black Health (ICBF). The ICBH conducted a meta-analysis of medical literature and found that among the 20 most-common cancers in Canada, 15 do not have any studies that include a sample of Black people. Pancreatic cancer and leukemia, for example, have never been studied among Black communities. “Current research still lies in its infancy, is poorly defined, and often overlooks possible differences among participants based on race,” the authors wrote. The dearth of information is reflective of Canadian researchers’ broadly colour-blind approach to collecting health data, according to the study, published in November in the American Cancer Society Journal. “Available Canadian data are usually not disaggregated by race . . . which is an approach wherein data concerning ethnic and racial identities are not collected nor analyzed, making it seem as though there are no issues related to race or ethnicity.” Most of our current knowledge about cancer in Black communities comes from the U.S., the study noted, where researchers “frequently incorporate race and ethnicity into their analyses.” The study also highlighted various disparities in the screening and frequency for certain cancers. For example, Black people in Canada are less likely to be screened for breast, cervical and colorectal cancer. This is despite data from the U.S. that indicate that Black women are particularly at risk for cervical and breast cancer, and that early detection could better their odds of survival. “This study shows that there is an urgent need to develop and implement programs to promote screening of breast and cervical cancer among Black women and prostate cancer among Black men,” said ICBH director Jude Mary Cénat, in a press release. These discrepancies in screening should be addressed “including within provincial healthcare systems and Black communities with culturally appropriate promotion programs, especially for cervical and prostate cancers,” the study read. Such promotion programs should also “take into account the general health disparities observed in Black communities in Canada that affect their confidence in the healthcare system.” The ICBH cited recent research that found that 53.1% of Black people aged 15-to-40 years old reported having experienced major racial discrimination in hospitals and healthcare services. It also cited another study that found that Black people in Canada are less likely to receive supportive care and more likely to experience aggressive attitudes from healthcare professionals, compared with white people. The study concluded that it is imperative for more race-based data to be collected as part of cancer research in this country, which needs to be better funded by federal and provincial governments as well as universities. In addition to the need for more race-based data in research studies, it is critical for race-based data to be collected in clinical medical record forms, according to the ICBH. “There can be no effective and appropriate care without data,” the study declared.

Severe lack of research on cancer in Black communities in Canada: study

Register for free access or login.

Related Topics