Stage-specific survival has improved for young breast cancer patients since 2000: but not equally.

Purpose: The stage-specific survival of young breast cancer patients has improved, likely due to diagnostic and treatment advances. We addressed whether survival improvements have reached all socioeconomic groups in a country with universal health care and national treatment guidelines.

Methods: Using Norwegian registry data, we assessed stage-specific breast cancer survival by education and income level of 7501 patients (2317 localized, 4457 regional, 233 distant and 494 unknown stage) aged 30-48 years at diagnosis during 2000-2015.

Socioeconomic inequalities in stage-specific breast cancer incidence: a nationwide registry study of 1.1 million young women in Norway, 2000-2015.

Background: Women with high socioeconomic status (SES) have the highest incidence rates of breast cancer. We wanted to determine if high SES women only have higher rates of localized disease, or whether they also have higher rates of non-localized disease. To study this, we used data on a young population with universal health care, but not offered screening.