Hispanics are less likely to be diagnosed with the four most common types of cancer (lung, colon, breast and prostate), but they are more prone to contracting liver, stomach and cervical cancer. These have in common that they are related to infections, such as the human papillomavirus,” says Dr. Lynne Padgett, from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities.
Many Latina women who need cancer treatment lack health insurance. Among people ages 18 to 64, 26% of Hispanics were uninsured during 2017-2018 compared to 9% of non-Hispanic whites, according to the American Cancer Society.
Regarding the genetic factor, if Latinos have a higher probability of contracting cervical cancer, it also makes them less vulnerable to breast cancer because “their Indigenous heritage protects them,” explains Alejandra Hurtado de Mendoza, assistant professor in the department of cancer prevention at Georgetown University in Washington. “Also the fact that Latina women have children at younger ages and breastfeed. These are protective factors that reduce the risk of suffering from breast cancer, but they are being lost among those who are born here and adopt behaviors that may be more risky, such as a less healthy diet, having fewer children,” she adds.
