Updated January 14, 2026
By Aaliyah Plummer, SWHR Communications Intern
The most common cause of cancer-related deaths among younger women (under age 50) is breast cancer. This disease, which can develop in both men and women, is often a focus of women’s health due to a significantly larger incidence and mortality rate in women. Between 2012 and 2021, the breast cancer incidence rate among women rose by 1%, but for women under the age of 50, this rate rose by 1.4%. Despite this figure being relatively low, this population tends to develop larger tumors and more aggressive forms of this cancer. There is a clear need for patients, researchers, and health care providers to better understand these trends and how they affect the long-term health of women across the lifespan.
Risk Factors
According to the National Cancer Institute, risk factors are defined as “something that increases the chance of developing a disease.” Inherited mutations in genes, such as BRCA1 and BRCA2, are typically found in younger women and place them at a higher risk for developing breast cancer. Moreover, around 20% of women in the United States are having their first child after the age of 35; advanced maternal age increases risk of breast cancer due to a delay in breastfeeding. Research has shown that 12 months of breastfeeding reduces risk for carriers of the high-risk BRCA1 gene mutations, which, as previously stated, is most common in younger women. Where someone decides to live can also become a risk factor for the rapid and undiagnosed advancement of breast cancer. Recent analysis has shown that of the 12 states ranked lowest for women’s general health, 11 have the highest rates of both breast and cervical cancers.
Racial and Ethnic Disparities
Recent breast cancer trends are concerning because they suggest an increased cancer risk for younger women of certain racial and ethnic backgrounds. Researchers have noticed trends among Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) populations with rates rising by 2.5% to 2.7% per year since 2012. Within this demographic, certain ethnic subgroups are at an even higher risk with Chinese American and Filipina American women having the highest risk of breast cancer. Asian American women of Chinese and Japanese heritage have lower mortality rates than white American women, while U.S. born Filipina and Pacific Islander women have a higher mortality rate than all these groups.
Black women have a lower overall incidence rate of breast cancer, despite having the highest incidence rate amongst women ages 20-39 years. Black women experience a significantly higher incidence rate of breast cancer (133.7 per 100,000) compared to white women (127.8 per 100,000). These disparities in rates worsen when looking at populations under 50, where Black women are twice as likely as white women to die from breast cancer. Both Black and Hispanic women are also more likely to have prolonged periods of time between mammograms or other diagnostic tests compared to white women. This could be the result of the 6.9% of Black women and 15% of Hispanic women nationally who lacked health insurance coverage in 2023. Addressing access to quality care for women across the country could help address the racial disparities that exist for those with breast cancer.
Moving Forward
To address the concerning rise in breast cancer rates amongst younger populations of women, there must be concerted efforts made in screening availability, reproductive health care access, and psychological health support. Currently, screenings are not recommended for women under the age of 40. Further, utilizing different screening options for younger women may be beneficial. For example, younger women tend to have denser breast, making normal breast tissue harder to distinguish from abnormal tissue. For popular screening methods, such as mammography, this difference can lead to false positives that require women to get additional follow-ups and procedures. Yet, as rates among younger women continue to rise, promoting screening, especially for those with a family history of cancers such as ovarian, pancreatic, or metastatic prostate, is more critical than ever before. Online tools and resources can assist in a woman’s decision to get screened before the recommended age. Breast cancer assessment tools, such as this one, utilize self-input data to estimate a person’s likelihood of disease development over a specific period. SWHR’s Value of Diagnostics within Women’s Health: Breast Cancer fact sheet highlights what increases a person’s risk for breast cancer and provides information on varying screening methods.
There is much progress to be made in addressing disparities in breast cancer diagnoses and mortality rates. To start, increasing access to health insurance and high-quality screenings in historically underserved communities is paramount. Additionally, across the health care system, we must educate younger women on their risk and available preventive screening options at earlier ages. Much of this can be achieved through promoting partnerships between local advocacy groups and health systems that are in tune with the diverse needs of each community. In educating those most at risk, we can work towards a future where the rate of breast cancer and preventable death is reduced for all women.