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December 1995 (Volume 73)
Quarterly Article
Michael Greenberg
Dona Schneider
September 2026
Sep 25, 2026
Sep 23, 2026
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Southern-born black Americans, especially those who migrated to the Northeast and Midwest, had much higher cancer mortality rates during the period 1979 to 1991 than their counterparts who were born and died outside the South. Elevated rates were apparent for the 35- to 44-year-old age group, and were highest among the elderly. The largest and most consistent differences between Southernborn and Northeastern, Midwestern, and Western-born African Americans were for cancer of the breast (female), esophagus, larynx, and lung (male), pancreas, prostate, and stomach. The combined effects of nutritional imbalances, cigarette smoking, high-risk jobs, limited access to medical screening and care, and other factors associated with poverty are suggested as etiologic factors common to this high-risk, Southern-born black population. It is also possible that the Southern-born excess of cancer deaths is at least partly an artifact of the data and the ecological level of the analysis.
Author(s): Michael Greenberg; Dona Schneider
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Volume 73, Issue 4 (pages 599–620) Published in 1995