OCTOBER IS BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
Dr. Wendy Wilcox aims to end disparities
in breast cancer diagnoses and care
Dr. Wendy Wilcox. Dr. Wendy Wilco
COURIER LIFE, OCT. 9-15, 2020 3
BY EMILY DAVENPORT
When it comes to breast cancer in
New York City, there are still disparities
in care for communities of color.
Dr. Wendy Wilcox,
board-certifi ed Obstetrician
Gynecologist
and the Clinical
System Lead for
Women’s Health, as
well as Chairperson
of Obstetrics
and Gynecology
for NYC Health +
Hospitals/Kings
County, has practiced
obstetrics, gynecology
and women’s health with a
focus on achieving health equity and
eliminating disparities across populations
throughout her career.
After earning a BA in Biomedical
Ethics from Brown University, Dr.
Wilcox attended SUNY Upstate Medical
Center and completed her residency
at Long Island College Hospital
in Brooklyn.
“There were women’s care counselors
that were placed in the dorms
to help students get to the right resources
in case of date rape, or to
help inform about public health topics
like STIs, how to stay healthy, or
how to identify eating disorders. I
became intrigued, not thinking that
this would inform what I do later,”
said Dr. Wilcox. “In that rotation,
I learned that liked talking to my
patients – you talk to the parents. I
really enjoyed a lot of teaching and
informing. As I was moving over
to women’s health, it’s such a wideopen
fi eld – it just drew me in.”
Dr. Wilcox became an attending
at Montefi ore Medical Center, which
led to her being director of her medical
group and Assistant Professor in
Ob-Gyn at the Albert Einstein College
of Medicine. Recently, Dr. Wilcox
was named Co-chair for Governor
Cuomo’s Taskforce on Maternal
Mortality and Disparate Racial Outcomes,
which recommended the
newly formed New York State Maternal
Mortality Review Committee.
In her experience, Dr. Wilcox notices
that those who are coming for
their annual check-ups and mammographies
are generally already
engaged in their health and tend to
follow the recommended practices.
The problem comes with those who
aren’t seeking treatment, particularly
those who are African American
or are of African descent, who
are at a higher risk of dying from
breast cancer.
“There is still a mistrust of the
medical community for valid reasons,”
said Dr. Wilcox. “Historically
we can look back and see many many
examples of how African Americans
and immigrants sometimes have
been the victims of some really horrifi
c medical experiments. African
American women are much more
likely to die of breast cancer than
Caucasian women because they are
generally diagnosed at a later stage,
and are more likely to have triple
negative breast cancer. The gap is
widening where there was a disparity
before.”
Triple negative breast cancer,
which shows no estrogen receptors,
progesterone receptors, and excess
HER2 protein accounts for 10-15% of
breast cancer and has a low survival
rate. It is common for African American
women under the age of 40, or
women with the BRCA1 mutation.
Multiple health organizations recommend
that women start getting
regular mammograms at the age of
40. In Dr. Wilcox’s experience, she
fi nds that many women aren’t getting
their mammograms because they
think the procedure is more painful
than it actually is. While in the age of
COVID-19, Dr. Wilcox notes that her
practice, as well as others throughout
the city, are taking precautions to
make sure a doctor’s visit is safe for
patients.
While there are some genetic factors
that can lead to the development
of breast cancer, Dr. Wilcox says that
maintaining your overall health
can help reduce your risk factors for
developing breast cancer. Certain
things like quitting smoking and
managing your weight can be benefi -
cial, as well as staying away from processed
foods can help reduce the risk
for women at any age, while women
of reproductive age can breastfeed to
reduce their risk.
“The healthier one is in general,
then the healthier one will be when
looking at certain diseases,” said Dr.
Wilcox. “Eating healthy, eating correct
amounts of fruits and vegetables,
exercising, trying to avoid refi
ne and processed foods and sugars,
reducing alcohol intake. There are
some changes that happen during
menopause — many gain weight and
experience insomnia
“We may not be as concerned
about our nutritional intake, the
older one gets the higher the chances
of one having breast cancer is a lifetime
risk, and it increases in menopause,”
she said. “Being thoughtful
of maintaining overall health is
good for your breasts.”