Dougherty: The ‘COVID cancer effect’ calls for creative and collaborative solutions

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death for women in the United States. Yet breast cancer doesn’t impact all communities in the same way. Despite having similar rates of breast cancer, Black women in the United States are more likely than white women to die of the disease, due to a range of social, economic, political and environmental factors that contribute to an individuals’ health conditions and disparities. COVID-19 also has wreaked havoc on cancer detection and further compounded these disparities, creating a “COVID cancer effect.”