2026 ACRLP Proceedings: Conclusion

Share On Social!

This content is from UT Health San Antonio’s book, “Advancing Cancer Research for Latinos and All Populations: 2026 Conference Proceedings,” which highlights results of the same-named conference in February 2026.

Conclusion

To address cancer issues in all populations, Advancing Cancer Research for Latinos and all Populations brought together researchers, scientists, physicians, healthcare professionals, patient advocates, and students from across the US and Latin America.

These presenters shared research advancements, identified gaps, developed actionable goals, updated clinical best practices, described effective interventions, and detailed professional training programs aimed at addressing variability in cancer outcomes.

In the process, many of the speakers made recommendations, either specific to their field of study or more broadly. The following are some key recommendations abstracted from their conference presentations.

Recommendations

Geriatric interventions

Geriatric assessments are recommended by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and can be used to obtain useful information. A geriatric assessment goes beyond the typical assessment of a cancer patient, and includes a more in-depth functional status evaluation, analyzing cognition, social support, nutrition, finances, medications, and emotional status to obtain a more complete view of the patient. [de Celis, Schiaffino]

AI may be used to abstract information about geriatric patients from unstructured notes. Unstructured electronic medical record (EMR) text contains critical age-related risk information which can be used in the absence of a geriatric or other structured assessment. AI enables the scalable abstraction of these unstructured notes in a way that supports geriatric and oncology initiatives. [Schiaffino]

Non-medical drivers of health

Non-medical drivers of health, such as insurance status, education attainment, socioeconomic status, transportation, access, and other factors must be addressed. These factors contribute to variable outcomes in hepatocellular carcinoma and other cancers. Patient navigation programs and coordination of care can help address barriers to care, building relationships between the navigator, the patient, and the caregiver. [Jones]

A financial navigator can make a powerful difference in helping patients and caregivers navigate the cost of care. Community partnerships such as legal resources can also support broader efforts to improve access to financial assistance resources. [Edward]

Individuals and healthcare systems can have an impact on polluting activities by making conscious choices about energy consumption. Increasing use of clean energy sources, especially those that are generated on site, can help reduce emissions and increase resilience to power outages from environmental change. Conscious choices about food consumption are also important in light of the high emissions associated with meat production, and the increased cancer risk associated with industrialized food consumption. [Nogueira]

After screening, follow-up care is needed. Hispanic women face barriers to follow-up care after an abnormal cervical cancer screening result. In a study of Hispanic individuals in Texas who received an abnormal cervical cancer screening result, only 65.6% received follow-up care within an optimal diagnostic interval. [Ortiz]

Blood Cancer United is an organization that takes a holistic approach to supporting blood cancer patients. They provide community support, fund lifesaving research, and advocate for healthcare policies. Patient support also extends to caregivers, who embark on the cancer journey alongside the patient and who are the backbone of the cancer journey. [Ortiz-Ravick]

Mental health and general health interventions

My Wellness Check is an integrated electronic health record system that also assesses needs and triages patients. My Wellness Check is embedded in the patient portal, and sends the patient a questionnaire about anxiety, depression, pain, fatigue, and physical function prior to an oncology appointment. The questionnaire also assesses nutritional needs and practical needs, including childcare, transportation, financial needs, and food insecurity. [Penedo]

Yoga programs have been helpful for adult breast cancer patients. Participants show significant improvements in several quality-of-life areas such as physical functioning, vitality, mental health, social functioning, bodily pain, and general health. [Almeida]

Virtual reality simulations create an immersive and interactive artificial environment through a headset to promote physical activity. This may be helpful for individuals who report neighborhood safety concerns and transportation limitations. [Castellon-Lopez]

Just-In-Time Adaptive Interventions (JITAIs) offer seamless and uninterrupted data tailored to an individual’s context and may be used in smartphone interventions to track diet, physical activity, and weight. tailored messages can be sent to participants based on the data. [Valle]

Cancer prevention must be integrated with primary care. A diagnosis of cancer does not suspend other chronic health conditions such as diabetes and hypertension, and patients who do not see a primary care physician during cancer treatment have worse outcomes than patients who do. [Cancino]

Clinical trial participation

Digital enablement and AI offer a powerful way to cut through the complexity of matching patients with clinical trials. The time required for manual methods means missed matching due to changing eligibility windows, complex sequences, or dynamic clinical changes. AI can quickly match patients with trials. [Loaiza-Bonilla]

Large language model-generated summaries offer a scalable approach to improve clinical trial communications. When paired with human oversight these summaries can also integrate patient advocate feedback with certified translations and can enhance cultural linguistic appropriateness and align with health literacy best practices. [Flores]

The SWOG Cancer Research Network Latin America Initiative (SLAI) seeks to build a bridge between US and Latin American cancer research. As a major part of the US publicly funded cancer research infrastructure, SWOG designs and conducts multi-institution clinical cancer trials with the mission of significantly improving lives through cancer clinical trials and translational research. [Chavez Mac Gregor]

Collaboration across institutions and geographic regions allows researchers to access study samples from a broad range of patient populations. These biospecimens can then be analyzed to isolate key components and better understand disease processes. [Trevino]

To advance beyond genome-wide association studies performed in the US, expansion studies should be conducted in other countries. For example, such studies are being used to investigate the impact of known acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) risk loci in populations outside of the US, potentially leading to the discovery of novel genetic associations in these populations. [de Smith]

To improve outcomes, liquid biopsies should be used to make frontline treatment decisions in patients with metastatic NSCLC. Liquid biopsies are non-inferior to tissue biopsies in identifying actionable genetic alterations in patients with NSCLC. Specifically, liquid biopsies are able to generate next-generation sequencing (NGS) results significantly faster than tissue biopsy NGS and bypass the logistical barriers of finding and shipping tissue samples for sequencing. [Raez]

Local organizations such as the Arizona Clinical Trial Network (ACTN) are able to focus on enrolling cancer patients who are typically overlooked. These organizations can also impact policy engagement. [Recio Boiles]

Community outreach and engagement (COE) can disrupt clinical trial segregation by identifying patients with cancer, providing clinical trial education, and building trust. Successful COE has several key requirements: developing a workforce reflective of the identities of the individuals served; building partnerships with local organizations; identifying and responding to the needs of the population; implementing language- and culturally tailored strategies for varying locations; and making long-term investment while fostering enduring relationships. [Guerra]

Policy interventions

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is associated with positive cancer outcomes. One study found that the ACA-dependent coverage expansion provision was associated with a net increase of 7.6% in early-stage diagnosis and a net increase of 13.4% in receipt of fertility sparing treatment. [Han]

The LEAP Act is a bipartisan effort to ensure graduate students have a borrowing capacity equal to their professional peers. This will expand the pipeline for critical health professionals, support rural and overlooked populations, and improve cultural competence in healthcare. [Rios]

Another bill moving through Congress is the Dignity Act, which aims to keep families together and protect citizens in light of recent actions taken by immigration enforcement. Since 60% of non-citizen spouses are primary caregivers, this bill allows non-citizens to obtain regulatory status, excluding individuals with a criminal history or who are a security risk. [Rios]

The Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection (MCED) Screening Coverage Act was included in a recently passed appropriations law. This act allows MCED screenings and establishes a clear pathway for Medicare to cover FDA-approved blood-based tests that can detect multiple cancers early. [Rios]

SEE THE FULL CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS