Black Women’s Health Study

The Black Women’s Health Study (BWHS) is a prospective follow-up study of 59,000 self-identified Black/African American women from across the U.S. which began in 1995. The study’s major goal is to assess risk factors for cancers and other major illnesses in Black women. Follow-up of participants every two years has yielded a rich resource for prospective analyses of the effects of a variety of behavioral, social, environmental, and genetic factors. The BWHS is led by investigators from the Slone Epidemiology Center: Dr. Julie Palmer and Dr. Kimberly Bertrand of the BU Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, and Dr. Yvette Cozier of the BU School of Public Health.

We encourage you to visit the BWHS website to learn more about the history of the study, relevant publications, and resources.

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Research

Black Women’s Health Study.

U.S. Black women have disproportionately high rates of many illnesses, including hypertension, breast cancer at young ages, diabetes, stroke, and lupus. There needs to be a better understanding of the causes of these illnesses and the determinants of good health in this understudied population.