Table 1.
Demographic Characteristics by Racea
| Characteristic | White (n = 266) b | African American (n = 262) b | P c |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age, y, mean (SD) | 64.9 (8.4) | 62.2 (8.1) | .0002 |
| Formal education | .4872 | ||
| <High school | 41 (15.4) | 46 (17.6) | |
| High school | 78 (29.3) | 70 (26.7) | |
| Some college or vocational training | 73 (27.4) | 78 (29.8) | |
| College graduate | 39 (14.7) | 36 (13.7) | |
| Graduate school | 34 (12.8) | 27 (10.3) | |
| Missing/refused to provide | 1 (0.4) | 5 (1.9) | |
| No. of years since BC diagnosis, mean (SD) | 12.7 (7.4) | 12.5 (7.2) | .7397 |
| BMI, mean (SD) | 29.5 (6.5) | 32.9 (7.3) | <.0001 |
| Household income, $d | <.0001 | ||
| ≤10 K | 29 (11.2) | 85 (33.3) | |
| 10,001–20 K | 64 (24.7) | 63 (24.7) | |
| 20,001–40 K | 79 (30.5) | 57 (22.4) | |
| >40,001 | 87 (33.6) | 50 (19.6) | |
| Location of enrollment | .128 | ||
| Community health center | 144 (54.1) | 159 (60.7) | |
| Public recruitment | 122 (45.9) | 103 (39.3) | |
| Insurance statuse | |||
| Medicaid | 30 (11.3) | 59 (22.5) | .0006 |
| Medicare | 152 (57.1) | 138 (52.7) | .3019 |
| Private | 160 (60.2) | 125 (47.7) | .0041 |
| CHAMPUS | 13 (4.9) | 11 (4.2) | .7040 |
| Other insurance | 27 (10.2) | 23 (8.8) | .5904 |
| No insurance | 20 (7.5) | 19 (7.3) | .8970 |
| Missing/refused to provide | 0 | 0 | |
| BC treatment | |||
| BC surgery | 262 (98.5) | 259 (98.9) | .7186 |
| Mastectomy | 160 (60.2) | 158 (61.0) | .9879 |
| Lumpectomy | 128 (48.1) | 112 (43.2) | .1988 |
| Sentinel node biopsy or axillary node dissection | 163 (61.3) | 138 (52.7) | .1057 |
| Chemotherapy | 122 (45.9) | 129 (49.2) | .4132 |
| Radiation | 126 (47.4) | 127 (48.5) | .8308 |
| Long-term oral medication | 139 (52.3) | 113 (43.1) | .0435 |
| No. of treatment modalities, mean (SD) | 3.4 (1.5) | 3.2 (1.3) | .0914 |
| Comorbidityf | |||
| High blood pressure | 105 (39.5) | 179 (68.3) | <.0001 |
| Myocardial infarct (yes only) | 10 (3.8) | 13 (5.0) | .5044 |
| Diabetes mellitus | 43 (16.2) | 89 (34.0) | <.0001 |
| CVA | 11 (4.1) | 12 (4.6) | .7950 |
| Hepatitis | 3 (1.1) | 9 (3.4) | .0764 |
| Emphysema | 23 (8.6) | 21 (8.0) | .8135 |
| Depression | 67 (25.2) | 56 (21.4) | .2999 |
| Osteoarthritis | 149 (56.0) | 159 (60.7) | .2763 |
| Menopause | 262 (98.5) | 246 (93.9) | .0056 |
BC = breast cancer; BMI = body mass index; CVA = cerebrovascular accident; K = thousand.
Values are reported as numbers (percentages) of women unless otherwise indicated.
P values for differences between racial groups were from independent sample t tests for continuous variables and χ2 tests for categorical characteristics.
Five hundred fourteen cases had complete data for household income by race as follows: White (n = 259) and African American (n = 255).
Survey participants were asked to select all insurance types that applied. Several combinations of insurance types were discovered during the survey: Medicaid and Medicare (n = 39); Medicaid, Medicare, and other (n = 13); Medicaid and other (n = 8); and Medicare and other (n = 152).
The following comorbidities were excluded because they had no statistically significant effect on our sample: congestive heart failure, HIV/AIDS, memory problems, and paralysis.