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Could Latina Women Be Protected From Breast Cancer By Specific Gene?

Could Latina Women Be Protected From Breast Cancer By Specific Gene
Could Latina Women Be Protected From Breast Cancer By Specific Gene

Photo: Getty Images

Statistically Latina women are less likely to get breast cancer than white or black women and now scientists think they might know why, The New York Times reports.

Approximately 20% of Hispanic women carry a particular gene that could be the reason they are protected from breast cancer, a new study from the University of California has discovered.

Currently, there is a 9% chance that a Latina woman will contract breast cancer. The study found that for women carrying that particular gene, that percentage falls to about 5%.

So what happens now? More research into exactly how this genetic variation works, and what about it could protect Hispanic women from breast cancer diagnosis.

But Dr Otis Brawley, the chief medical officer at the American Cancer Society, said that the study is a big leap forward in cancer research. “I’m confident that this finding is going to hold, that most women who have this genetic variation are at lower risk of breast cancer,” the New York Times reports.

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