That’s to say, the national profile of the person dying of COVID-19 does not fit the black one that of being young with fewer medical conditions than that of white people. 

As if breast cancer was not worrying enough, along came a pandemic in the shape of the coronavirus / COVID-19. Inevitably, there has been an abundance of information about what the coronavirus is and is not so we will avoid adding to any further speculations. However, we do need to think about a few things. 

• A recent research study carried out by Edinburgh University, Liverpool University and Imperial College London, looked at 166 hospitals in England, Wales and Scotland about COVID-19 patients and found that out of 16,000 patients about a third had died.
• The median age of the mortality rate is 72 years.
• Looking at the characteristics and outcomes of 520 patients hospitalised for the disease in London, researchers found that people of black ethnicity could be experiencing increased odds of mortality after contracting the virus – despite being of a younger healthier group.
• According to Dr Riyaz Patel at University College London, black patients coming to the hospital with symptoms ‘are younger with fewer other medical conditions than white patients’.
• The study also suggests a possible trend with a higher risk of black deaths from the illness again compared to white patients.

That’s to say, the national profile of the person dying of COVID-19 does not fit the black one that of being young with fewer medical conditions than that of white people. 

Why young black people are dying of COVID-19 seems then not to lie in our age and health condition so much as the lack of quality in black lives. This might speak to additional race trauma associated with lower incomes, unemployment, poor housing for example.

Not unlike the coronavirus,

• There is a 21-year difference between black women contracting breast cancer compared to white women. Black women for breast cancer are seen at a median age of 46 years – 4 years before routine NHS Screening for the illness starts.
• That compares with a median of 67 years for white women according to the first published data on breast cancer presentation in black women in the British Journal of Cancer – known since 2008.
• There is a similar pattern in the US and because black women have higher breast cancer mortality rates than white women, in 2018 the American College of Radiology and the Society of Breast Imaging recommended that black women be added to groups considered high risk for breast cancer. This enables earlier breast screening between 30 – 40 years to meet the needs of black women. 

Currently, Oncologist departments across the world are functioning with three major priorities for patients with cancer in the COVID-19 crisis as well as, for future attacks of severe infections.

1. Postponement of chemotherapy or elective surgery for stable cancer, particularly in endemic areas.
2. Stronger personal protection provisions made available for patients with cancer or cancer survivors.
3. More intensive surveillance or treatment is considered when patients with cancer are infected with SARS-CoV-2, especially in older patients or those with other comorbidities
4. Again, 3. Above conflicts with the evidence of black coronavirus and (breast) cancer patients insofar as for ‘black diagnoses’ does not appear to be reliant on being older or with other comorbidities.

There is a real need for black people diagnosed with both cancer and the coronavirus / COVID-19 keep an eye on this. EARLY DETECTION from a black perspective means ‘MUCH, MUCH EARLIER’ DETECTION AND CLOSE MONITORING is vital 

​STAY POSITIVE! 

• ​As cancer patients, we are used to protecting our immune system so do not undervalue what you have already learned.
• Having the coronavirus might cause no more than an increase in temperature. In coronavirus terms, that might not be so serious but in chemotherapy treatment, it can be deadly. Call your hospital immediately and treat it as an emergency but not as the end of the world.
• Do not disempower yourselves by fixating on the daily bombardment of negative news on TV. The most important quality for your health is positivity. Some doctors say positivity is 80% of the work and they do the other 20%.

Staying positive is a practice to turn into a lifestyle. Getting both cancer and the coronavirus may well feel overwhelming but it need not be a death sentence. Honestly. Stay calm, move through it and carry on living one small step at a time.