Dr. Rebecca Jones, assistant director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio, shared important community engagement strategies at the 2026 AACI Catchment Area Data Excellence (CADEx) Conference on March 9, 2026, in Atlanta. The event brought together National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center data experts, geospatial statisticians, and representatives from government and industry to address emerging topics in cancer prevention and control analytics. Jones was part of a panel that explored how to use catchment-area data to improve access and outcomes. "Panelists discussed how data inform their choices, focusing on the importance of community engagement for understanding where barriers exist and how access can be improved. Listening sessions ...
About 80,450 new cases of kidney cancer will be diagnosed in U.S. men and women in 2026, according to the American Cancer Society. The month of March is recognized as Kidney Cancer Awareness Month, a time to raise awareness, educate, and promote helpful tools to help people learn more about kidney cancer. With this in mind, let’s look at four free, easy-to-use resources to use and share during Kidney Cancer Awareness Month.
What is Kidney Cancer?
Kidney cancer is a disease where cells in the kidney grow out of control, according to the CDC. The main types of kidney cancer include renal cell cancer (RCC), transitional cell cancer (TCC), and Wilms tumor. “RCC is the most common type of kidney cancer in adults. It forms in the lining of the tiny tubes in the kidney that ...
From recruiting study participants to seeking approval from a university’s Institutional Review Board (IRB), there are so many facets of clinical research. When considering how to navigate it, look no further than the University of Texas at Austin’s Dell Medical School's Nuts and Bolts of Executing a Clinical or Population Research Study virtual series. This series aims to help researchers achieve research success by giving them the tools they need to make a positive impact in healthcare.
About the ‘Nuts and Bolts’ Program
The series consists of one-hour discussion forums spanning several topics aligned with running a clinical or population research study. Previous topics include recruitment and retention, navigating IRBs, HIPAA ...
Researchers are working hard to find new ways to treat triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), an aggressive disease. However, many Latina and Hispanic women face challenges in TNBC diagnosis, treatment access, and supportive care. Patients and caregivers from these communities often navigate complex health systems and deal with non-medical drivers of health. To address these issues and apply findings to all populations, Medlive, a digital health education platform, with the support of Gilead Sciences, Inc., partnered with Salud America! and Surviving Breast Cancer.org to design an educational initiative to align TNBC learning experiences for clinicians, patients, and caregivers. Medlive published their results in an abstract for the 2025 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium ...
Did you know that over 65,000 U.S. physicians identify as Latino? As the number of physicians and healthcare professionals of different backgrounds continues to increase, it’s important to reflect on those who have paved the way. During Hispanic Heritage Month, we want to spotlight important figures throughout history and making a difference today. Let’s recognize Dr. José Celso Barbosa, the first Afro-Latino to obtain a medical degree in the United States.
Early Life in Puerto Rico
Dr. José Celso Barbosa Alcalá, also known as José Celso Barbosa, was born on July 27, 1857, in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, to his parents Carmen Alcalá and Hermógenes Barbosa. “Barbosa’s life traversed significant periods: Spanish colonization; Grito de Lares; slavery, abolition and ...
Rick Alvarado has always prioritized education. As a child, the San Antonio-area resident remembers often “playing school” with his neighborhood friends and many of his 10 siblings. “I always knew from very young that I [wanted] to be a teacher,” said Rick. Following in his older brother’s footsteps, Rick would do just that, spending 38 years teaching K-12 and serving in other roles like assistant principal, principal, interim superintendent, and assistant superintendent. He retired a few years ago. But Rick’s life would change on January 7, 2017, when he was diagnosed with stage 2 prostate cancer.
Rick’s Cancer Diagnosis
Prior to his diagnosis, Rick’s doctor told him he had high prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels. PSA tests measure the level of ...
In the last 15 years, U.S. mortality rates have leveled off or worsened, according to a new report from the National Institutes of Health. One of the lesser-known reasons for this trend is educational level. “Notably, research has found that mortality is [better] among people with a higher level of education,” according to NIH. Let’s dig deeper into this research and what it means for our communities.
What Research Found on Educational Levels
The NIH cites a recent study, published in JAMA Health Forum and led by Boston University School of Public Health. The study examined U.S. mortality rates by educational attainment before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Along with data from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics and the U.S. Census ...
Jewel Ng has always had an interest in studying medicine. However, when her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, Ng started to look at a career in medicine differently. “I think seeing how her oncologist handled things, and just like the general process of dealing with something as difficult as that,” Ng said. That’s why Ng has a goal of not only treating people, but for truly taking care of them. Today, she is pursuing medicine as a second-year student at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and served as a Robert A. Winn clinical investigator intern at UT Health San Antonio’s Institute for Health Promotion Research. “It's completely different to actually and be part of that experience of having to drive them to, like chemotherapy, having ...
“You just keep pushing. You just keep pushing.” That’s something Diego Cano has told himself throughout his life. When he failed a health certification test on the first try. When he struggled to balance work, study, and military service. When he wasn’t sure what direction to pursue. Today, Cano has pushed through many hardships and is following his passion of helping others as a rising second-year medical student at the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine at Texas Tech University Health Science Center El Paso and as a Robert A. Winn clinical investigator intern at UT Health San Antonio’s Institute for Health Promotion Research. While he is accomplishing a lot of great things, rarely did it come easily.
Cano’s Early Life and Finding a Passion
Cano grew up in ...
