Though the Susan G. Komen 3-Day® bleeds pink, we celebrate all colors of the rainbow! Inclusivity is at the core of the Pink Bubble because breast cancer doesn’t discriminate against race, ethnicity, sexuality, or status. This Pride Month, we strive to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community as well as highlight the discrepancies in health outcomes that individuals may face regarding breast cancer. 

While breast cancer isn’t a female-only disease, cisgendered lesbians and bisexual women tend to have an increased risk of breast cancer compared to cisgendered heterosexual women. This is not due to their sexual orientation, rather, studies show the increased risk of breast cancer is linked to risk factors that tend to be more common in lesbians such as never having children or having them later in life, obesity and alcohol use. Additionally, some lesbian and bisexual women may not get regular mammograms due to lack of health insurance, perceived low risk of breast cancer, past discrimination or insensitivity from health care providers, and having trouble finding a health care provider. If you are part of the LGBTQIA+ community, one step you can take is to find a health care provider who is sensitive to your needs. You can get a referral from a trusted friend or turn to the National LGBT Cancer Network, which has a directory of LGBT-welcoming cancer screening centers that may be helpful. 

Unfortunately, data on screening mammography in transgender people and nonbinary people is limited. One small study compared breast cancer rates among transgender people who had hormone treatments, with or without surgery as part of their transition, to breast cancer rates in the general population. These early findings suggested that transmasculine people (female to male) had a much lower risk of breast cancer than cis-gendered women, but a higher risk than cis-gendered men. On the other hand, transfeminine people (male to female) had a much lower risk of breast cancer than cis-gendered women, but a higher risk than cis-gendered men. With little research having been conducted, there’s still much to learn about the risk of breast cancer in transgender people and we’re eager to discover more data. If you’re transgender, please talk with your health care provider about your risk of breast cancer.