African American breast cancer survivors in the Deep South experience disproportionately high mortality from cardiovascular disease. Risk factors for cardiovascular disease such as hypertension and obesity are highly prevalent among this population. This study aimed to assess the association between heart disease knowledge and cardiovascular health metrics in Black female breast cancer survivors of the Deep South.
The study was conducted between October 2019 and June 2020. Eligible participants were African American women living in the Deep South over 18 who had been diagnosed with breast cancer and had completed treatment at least a year before the study.
The women filled out a questionnaire detailing what they knew about heart disease and its risk factors. Researchers utilized My Life Check to gain an understanding of each participant’s cardiovascular health metrics. Multivariate regression analyses were performed to determine if there was a correlation among the participants’ demographic characteristics, cardiovascular health metrics, and knowledge of heart disease.
Of the 70 participants in the study, 42.9% had a college education or higher level of education. The average age of the participants was 56.76 years. The only statistically significant demographic factor correlated with increased knowledge of cardiovascular disease was education level. The only statistically significant cardiovascular health metric associated with increased cardiovascular disease knowledge was diet.
The researchers concluded that women with more knowledge of cardiovascular disease and higher educational attainment were more likely to have better cardiovascular health metrics. A call to action is made to connect Black breast cancer survivors of the Deep South with adequate cardiovascular disease risk reduction interventions to reduce heart disease rates among this population [1].
Source:
[1] Williams, M. S., & Anyimukwu, C. (2020). The Association Between Cardiovascular Disease Knowledge and Risk Factors Among African American Breast Cancer Survivors in the Deep South. Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice, 13(4). https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/jhdrp/vol13/iss4/7
