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Low Rates of African American Participation in Genetic Counseling and Testing for BRCA1/2 Mutations: Racial Disparities or Just a Difference?
Author(s) -
Halbert Chanita Hughes,
Kessler Lisa,
Collier Aliya,
Weathers Benita,
Stopfer Jill,
Domchek Susan,
McDonald Jasmine A.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of genetic counseling
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.867
H-Index - 52
eISSN - 1573-3599
pISSN - 1059-7700
DOI - 10.1007/s10897-012-9485-y
Subject(s) - genetic counseling , african american , medicine , genetic testing , public health , health equity , clinical psychology , gerontology , psychology , demography , family medicine , genetics , nursing , ethnology , sociology , biology , history
Low rates of genetic counseling among African American women have generated concerns about disparities; however, to the extent that women's decisions to accept or decline counseling are consistent with their values, then lower participation may reflect preferences and not disparities. We evaluated the extent to which women were satisfied with their decision about participating in genetic counseling for BRCA1/2 mutations and identified variables that were associated significantly with satisfaction. Prospective study of decision satisfaction with 135 African American women who had a minimum 5% prior probability of having a BRCA1/2 mutation. Decision satisfaction was evaluated one month after women were offered participation in genetic counseling using a structured questionnaire. Women were satisfied with their participation decision; more than 80% reported that their decision was consistent with their family values. However, women who declined pre‐test counseling had significantly lower satisfaction scores. Our findings highlight the importance ensuring that racial differences that are due to preferences and values are not misclassified as disparities in order to identify and address the root causes of disparate treatment.