Racial differences in receipt of adjuvant hormonal therapy among Medicaid enrollees in South Carolina diagnosed with breast cancer

Several factors contribute to the pervasive Black–White disparity in breast cancer mortality in the U.S., such as tumor biology, access to care, and treatments received including adjuvant hormonal therapy (AHT), which significantly improves survival for hormone receptor-positive breast cancers (HR+). We analyzed South Carolina Central Cancer Registry-Medicaid linked data to determine if, in an equal access health care system, racial differences in the receipt of AHT exist. We evaluated 494 study-eligible, Black (n = 255) and White women (n = 269) who were under 65 years old and diagnosed with stages I–III, HR+ breast cancers between 2004 and 2007. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to assess receipt of ≥1 AHT prescriptions at any point in time following (ever-use) or within 12 months of (early-use) breast cancer diagnosis. Seventy-two percent of the participants were ever-users (70 % Black, 74 % White) and 68 % were early-users (65 % Black, 71 % White) of AHT. Neither ever-use (adjusted OR (AOR) = 0.75, 95 % CI 0.48–1.17) nor early-use (AOR = 0.70, 95 % CI 0.46–1.06) of AHT differed by race. However, receipt of other breast cancer-specific treatments was independently associated with ever-use and early-use of AHT [ever-use: receipt of surgery (AOR = 2.15, 95 % CI 1.35–3.44); chemotherapy (AOR = 1.97, 95 % CI 1.22–3.20); radiation (AOR = 2.33, 95 % CI 1.50–3.63); early-use: receipt of surgery (AOR = 2.03, 95 % CI 1.30–3.17); chemotherapy (AOR = 1.90, 95 % CI 1.20–3.03); radiation (AOR = 1.73, 95 % CI 1.14–2.63)]. No racial variations in use of AHT among women with HR+ breast cancers insured by Medicaid in South Carolina were identified, but overall rates of AHT use by these women is low. Strategies to improve overall use of AHT should include targeting breast cancer patients who do not receive adjuvant chemotherapy and/or radiation.