Back in 2020, I lost my grandmother to stage four breast cancer after a long and painful five-year battle that consisted of countless chemotherapy sessions. Two years later, in 2022, I lost my aunt to triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer that was so resistant to hormonal therapy and surgery that the oncologists nearly gave up on finding treatment.
While there have been a lot of breast cancer advancements, including earlier diagnoses and more effective treatments, Black women are still dying at a significantly higher rate from breast cancer compared to women of other races. A 2022 study on breast cancer statistics revealed that Black women are 40% more likely to die from breast cancer despite having a lower incidence rate.