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Amelie Ramirez

I am director of Salud America! at UT Health San Antonio. I have spent 30 years directing research on human and organizational communication to reduce chronic disease, cancer, and obesity health disparities affecting Latinos.


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Articles by Amelie Ramirez

Cancer Screening Challenges: 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos


cancer screening latino patient doctor

This is part of the "Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos: 2022 Conference Proceedings," which summarizes findings and discussions of the 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos Conference on Feb. 23-25, 2022, in San Antonio, Texas. Cancer Screening in Puerto Rico Challenges and Opportunities to Address Health Differences Dr. Guillermo Tortolero-Luna is Director of the Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences Program at the University of Puerto Rico Comprehensive Cancer Center. Cancer Statistics in Puerto Rico Dr. Tortolero-Luna began by describing the cancer landscape in Puerto Rico. In 2012, malignant cancers became the cause of death with the highest age-adjusted mortality rate in the territory. The highest cancer sites among Puerto Rican men are ...

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Tackling Cancer Differences: 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos


latino family playing board games reduce cancer differences.jpg

This is part of the "Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos: 2022 Conference Proceedings," which summarizes findings and discussions of the 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos Conference on Feb. 23-25, 2022, in San Antonio, Texas. Updates in Genomics of Breast Cancer among Latina Women Dr. Elad Ziv is a Professor of Medicine at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), with a research focus on human genetics of cancer susceptibility and hematological traits. Genomics Explained To set the stage for his presentation, Dr. Ziv explained genomics in a lay-friendly way, describing it as a long series of letters. A change of one letter in this series, from an A to a G for example, can lead to anything from a change in height to a disease susceptibility. Not ...

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The Impact of COVID-19 on Cancer Care: 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos


covid cancer care latinos

This is part of the "Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos: 2022 Conference Proceedings," which summarizes findings and discussions of the 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos Conference on Feb. 23-25, 2022, in San Antonio, Texas. COVID-19 Past, Present and Future Dr. Carlos Del Rio is Distinguished Professor of Medicine, Global Health, and Epidemiology. He is also Executive Associate Dean of Emory University School of Medicine, and President-Elect of the Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA). The Continued Presence of COVID-19 Dr. Del Rio began by pointing out that the COVID-19 pandemic is not over, despite gains made over the past year. At the time of his presentation, there were still two million global cases diagnosed daily, and close to 10,000 ...

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Latino Cancer Research Methodology: 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos


latina cancer research methodology

This is part of the "Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos: 2022 Conference Proceedings," which summarizes findings and discussions of the 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos Conference on Feb. 23-25, 2022, in San Antonio, Texas. Framing Latino Cancer Research and the Census Bureau Data That Enable It Mr. Robert L. Santos is the Director of the US Census Bureau, the first Latino to serve in that position. Lessons from a Vibrant Career Director Santos began by sharing wisdom gleaned from 40 years of research, including two ways in which it is important to think differently about research problems. First, researchers tend to emulate the methods and thought processes that they have been taught, but these conventional approaches may become self-propagating, and ...

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Addressing Differences Behind Cancer Inconsistencies: 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos


Latina mom and family differences in cancer inconsistencies

This is part of the "Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos: 2022 Conference Proceedings," which summarizes findings and discussions of the 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos Conference on Feb. 23-25, 2022, in San Antonio, Texas. Addressing Differences to Advance Health Improvement for Latinos Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith is an internal medicine physician, the Associate Dean for Health [Improvement] Research at Yale School of Medicine, and the Associate Director for Community Outreach and Engagement at the Cancer Center. Dr. Nunez-Smith served as chair of the Presidential COVID-19 Health [Improvement] Task Force, and is one of the nation's foremost experts on differences in healthcare access. Health Differences Affecting Neglected Communities Dr. Nunez-Smith spoke ...

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Introduction: 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos


latino family advancing the science of cancer in Latinos conference.jpg

This is part of the "Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos: 2022 Conference Proceedings," which summarizes findings and discussions of the 2022 Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos Conference on Feb. 23-25, 2022, in San Antonio, Texas. Healthcare Improvement in the Latino community The United States healthcare system is rife with challenges affecting the Latino community, with a population of 60.6 million [Estrada]. Health challenges include higher rates of infant mortality, stroke, cancer, heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, and COVID-19. [Webb Hooper, Duma] Latino patients, especially those who are uncomfortable discussing care in English, are often labeled as unintelligent and non-compliant. [Duma] In the COVID-19 pandemic, cases among the Latino population have been ...

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Volunteer for a Clinical Trial for Your Familia!


Volunteer for a Clinical Trial for your familia

Cancer and Alzheimer’s hurt many of our abuelos, moms, dads, and others we love. Clinical trials help us fight for our familia. Clinical trials are studies that help researchers learn more to help slow, manage, and treat Alzheimer’s and cancer for current and future family members. But without Latino volunteers for clinical trials, the benefits may miss this group. Visit our clinical trials page to find a clinical trial, read about hero volunteers, and more! Share your story with us! “Latinos in clinical trials are not only helping themselves, but they’re also building a future with better treatments that can help their families in the future,” said Dr. Amelie Ramirez, director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research and Salud America! at UT Health San ...

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