If you have breast cancer, your diagnosis is likely to be made later if you are a rural woman

Rural women are more likely to be diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer than their urban counterparts, a new study by researchers at the University of Missouri shows. Time and travel inconveniences may be a large contributing factor, Angelina Tala of Medical Daily reports.

Faustine Williams, a doctoral student in the Department of Rural Sociology, found women traveling 50 to 75 miles for health care "are 10 percent more likely to be diagnosed with late stage breast cancer," Tala reports. Lack of reasonably priced and nearby preventative treatments and testing increase the risk of discovering the disease when it's in a later stage.

Williams used data from the Missouri Information for Community Assessment and mapping software to pinpoint patients with various stages of breast cancer and the locations of the nearest screening facility. Then by calculating the distance between patients in each cancer stage and the nearest screening facility, Williams concluded rural women are more likely to be diagnosed later. (Read more)