Breast cancer is among the top 10 causes of death—more than 40,000 in 2007—in women in the U.S

Breast cancer is among the top 10 causes of death--more than 40,000 in 2007--in women in the U.S. As for African-American females, notes Sulma Mohammed, associate professor of cancer biology at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind., they "develop a particular kind of tumor, called ER-negative, at a young age," and these individuals generally have tumors that are more aggressive than those of Caucasian women.

"We're trying to discover ways to improve early detection, which is critical to keep these tumors at a controllable stage."

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