Understanding Race-Based Medicine and Its Impact on Radiology

Abstract

Although race is widely accepted as a social construct, the practice of medicine is embedded with the assumption of race as a genetic marker that explains differences in disease prevalence, presentation, and health outcomes and encourages the "correction" for race in interpreting certain test results and values. This false premise, which is fundamental to the theory of race-based medicine, is integrated into clinical practice and has resulted in inequitable care among communities of color. The impact of race-based medicine in radiology might be less apparent but is nonetheless considerable because it affects the entire continuum of radiology practice. In this review, we discuss historical perspectives, examine various incriminated scenarios relevant to radiology, and offer mitigation strategies.

Keywords: Health disparities; health equity; race-based medicine; social justice.