VA patients with breast cancer are often located in sparsely populated rural areas throughout the U.S. According to Sarah Colonna, MD, of the George E. Whalen VA in Salt Lake City, Utah, geographic differences must be accounted for when physicians create treatment plans.
“Forty percent of veterans are considered rural whereas only 16% of the general population is considered rural,” Dr. Colonna said. “We were exploring whether rural women were getting the appropriate care and appropriate treatment compared with their urban counterparts.”
