Novel Recruitment Techniques for a Study of Culture-Specific Diet, Metabolic Variability, and Breast Cancer Risk in African-American Women

摘要

African-American women have younger breast cancer diagnosis, more aggressive tumors, and higher mortality rates than Caucasians. Ascertaining reasons for disparities is hampered due to the difficulty in enrolling African- Americans into research studies. This study was designed to develop a novel method of recruitment, and to collect pilot data on risk factors that could, in part, explain racial differences in breast cancer. Cases and controls are sent an introductory postcard by a breast cancer survivor from their town or county, with her photograph on it, followed by a telephone call from that recruiter. To date, the recruitment methodology is established, and 75 African-American cases and 30 controls have been interviewed, with response rates of 63% and 56%, respectively. In a previous study, rates were 37% and 30%. Interviews have been conducted and are ongoing, data has been double-entered into a database, and blood and urine samples for genotyping and phenotyping have also been obtained. All of the assays to be performed have been refined in our laboratories.