Dr. Tiffany Gary-Webb (BCHS Associate Professor) and her colleagues recently published the first systematic review and meta-analysis to summarize the literature on the neighborhood (residential) environment and its association with breast cancer incidence and mortality in the journal BMC Cancer . Data from 31 studies were reviewed and mostly used national and state cancer registry data. Overall, residing in urban areas and in areas characterized by higher socioeconomic status (SES) was associated with higher breast cancer incidence. Few studies included a significant portion of minority women, thus, more research is needed to understand whether the associations between residential environment and breast cancer are consistent across US racial/ethnic populations. The authors conclude that future studies in this area should have a priori conceptual thinking about how the residential environment measures link to outcomes, incorporate potential confounders and mediators, and use multi-level analytic techniques.
7/02/2015