Rappers, Actress Urge Latino to Get Screened for Cancer, Join Clinical Trials



Hip hop artist Chuck D, one of the founding members of Public Enemy, once urged people of color to “Fight the Power.” Now he’s urging them to fight cancer. Chuck D wants people to “check your behind” and get screened for colon cancer as part of a new public service announcement (PSA) from Stand Up to Cancer / Unidos Contra El Cancer, a charitable fundraiser for cancer research. DJ and poet Pete Colon sings the same musical message in a Spanish-language PSA. In another PSA video, actress Uzo Abuda urges people of color to join clinical trials. “Hip-hop has a powerful voice and we’re using it to help make the community better, to try to get people to pay attention, to stay healthy and to catch things early instead of reading about it when it’s too late,” said ...

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Melawhy Garcia: Éxito! Connected Me to Other Latino Professionals


melawhy garcia exito latino cancer research leadership training

Dr. Melawhy Garcia wanted to elevate her work to improve health among Latinos in California by applying for PhD programs, but she wasn’t sure about it. She wanted to hear from experienced faculty and scholars about what the process would be like. That’s why she attended the Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training at UT Health San Antonio. “I actually knew some of the faculty presenting at [Éxito!], so I definitely wanted to hear from them and see what their journey was like going through a PhD program,” Garcia said. Éxito! helped Garcia apply to PhD programs and get accepted to a joint Doctoral Program in Public Health from the University of California, San Diego and San Diego State University. Now, Garcia is an assistant professor in the Department of ...

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Workshop: How to Advance Systemic Change to Reduce Obesity


obesity workshop roundtable latina girl grocery store fruit

Latinos and other people of color suffer high rates of obesity. This is often due to racist policies and discriminatory practices that create less access to healthcare, healthy food, affordable housing, and financial resources for families of color. What can we do about this? You are invited to join a virtual workshop, "Systems and Obesity: Advances and Innovations for Equitable Health and Well-Being," on Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021 (10 a.m. To 2:45 p.m. ET) and Friday, Oct. 29, 2021 (1 p.m. to 4 p.m. ET). This is the third workshop in a series from the Roundtable on Obesity Solutions of the Health and Medicine Division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Find the results of the first and second workshop. "The workshop will explore how to ...

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Alma Lopez: Better Health Through a Breast Cancer Clinical Trial


Alma Lopez-breast-cancer-clinical-trial

Breast cancer is the top cause of death for Latinas. But Alma Lopez has been a breast cancer survivor for more than 15 years. She believes participating in a clinical trial at UT Health San Antonio helped her get better treatment and better long-term health in her survivorship journey. “Clinical trials are great for finding new treatments that help people,” Lopez said. “And it helps the scientists. It gives opportunity to better medication for all populations. It builds a better future.” Lopez Chooses a Breast Cancer Clinical Trial About 15 years ago, Lopez was diagnosed with breast cancer. Lopez began weighing her treatment options. At first, she had doubts about whether to volunteer for a clinical trial. She thought it might take too much time, or cause ...

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Alma López: Mejor Salud a Través de un Estudio Clínico de Cáncer de Seno


Alma Lopez-breast-cancer-clinical-trial

El cáncer de Seno es la causa principal de muerte en las latinas. Pero Alma López ha sido una sobreviviente de cáncer de seno por más de 15 años. Ella cree que su participación en un estudio clínico de UT Health San Antonio la ayudó a tener un mejor tratamiento y a largo plazo una mejor salud en su camino de supervivencia. "Los estudios clínicos pueden encontrar tratamientos nuevos que ayudan a las personas", dijo López. "Y ayudan a los científicos. Ofrecen la oportunidad de tratamientos mejores para todas las poblaciones. Construyen un futuro mejor". López Decidió Participar en un Estudio Clínico de Cáncer de Seno Aproximadamente hace 15 años, López fue diagnosticada con cáncer de seno. López comenzó a considerar sus opciones de tratamiento. Al ...

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Report: The Relationship between Climate Change and Health Equity


Climate change

Climate change is an ongoing environmental dilemma that threatens the health of all people. Yet, research has shown that certain groups, such as Latinos and other people of color, immigrants, those with a lower socio-economic status, and vulnerable occupational groups are most likely to suffer longer and more severely from climate change. “The effects of climate change add to other longstanding differences among people that result in different health outcomes for communities in the United States,” reported the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. What Is Climate Change? Climate change is defined as a long-term shift in global or regional climate patterns. Long-term alterations in temperature or the typical weather patterns of a certain location can lead to ...

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Comment Now: Tell HHS How to Improve Healthcare for Latinos!


clinical trial doctor nurse patient help

As part of its draft Strategic Plan for 2022-2026, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is looking for feedback from the public. The plan has five strategic goals for how the department will achieve its mission: Protect and Strengthen Equitable Access to High Quality and Affordable Health Care Safeguard and Improve National and Global Health Conditions and Outcomes Strengthen Social Well-being, Equity, and Economic Resilience Restore Trust and Accelerate Advancements in Science and Research for All Advance Strategic Management to Build Trust, Transparency, and Accountability At Salud America!, we believe that improving healthcare by making it more accessible and culturally tailored for people of color will help build health equity. This means ...

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Report: 1 in 5 Latino Youth Have Obesity


Latino youth have obesity rwjf report from seattle

One in six U.S. youth have obesity, but the issue is worse among Latinos and other youth of color, according to a new report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). More than one in five Latino (21.4%), Black (23.8%), and American Indian/Alaska Native (28.7%) children ages 10-17 have obesity. The reasons? Structural racism and systemic health inequities. Racist policies and discriminatory practices affect our food system, access to healthcare, affordable housing, and critical family supports like childcare, the RWJF report says. Together, the effects of these policies and practices force families into hard choices on how to spend limited resources, especially during COVID-19. “The state of childhood obesity in America is an urgent call to action for leaders at all ...

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Survey: Childcare, Logistics Hold Back Latinas from Breast Cancer Clinical Trials


Cancer Screening Latino clinical trials

Simple logistics—availability, childcare, and time—stop some Latinas and other women of color from volunteering for breast cancer clinical trials, according to a new survey. The survey, led by For The Breast of Us, an online breast cancer survivor community, and Sommer Consulting, found that the anticipated time demands of a clinical trial may appear "too intimidating." Most women of color struggle with multiple demands in their lives. The perceived or real logistics of participating in a clinical trial could make it harder. One respondent said: “You still have to worry about how am I going to run my household, especially as a woman of color, who typically a lot of times are single-family or single-parent households." "The results of this survey demonstrate how ...

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