Editor's Note: To recognize National Cancer Survivor's Day on June 2, 2013, SaludToday is telling the stories of Latino survivors through their own words. By Julie La Fuente Louviere At 29, I was living in Puerto Rico, and I was in the best shape of my life, training for a triathlon and weighing only 115 pounds of muscle. I felt like I was in total control. I found a knot near my collarbone, which I believed was nothing, but my husband made me get it checked out. The diagnosis was breast cancer. I was in shock. I thought cancer was something that only old people got. I learned the ugly side effects of chemotherapy, like losing hair and eyebrows, but I could give them up if I had to. If I had to lose a breast to survive, I was ready. My motto became “Just do it.” If you want to ...
Editor's Note: To recognize National Cancer Survivor's Day on June 2, 2013, SaludToday is telling the stories of Latino survivors through their own words. By Joan Treviño Lawhon I think women are blessed with a sixth sense. Recently, during a show on breast cancer survivors, several said they knew immediately that something was wrong. I could definitely relate. My basic tests were within normal limits, but I had what I can only describe as a “gut feeling.” I had some very supportive doctors who followed through on my instincts. It took five tests to confirm a malignancy. Within an hour of my diagnosis, I was at Barnes & Noble buying layman’s books on breast cancer. We can freeze and let the disease consume us, or we can fight. My choice was to fight. I was going to make ...
Latino students are widely exposed to high-fat, high-sugar snacks and drinks sold in schools, but implementing stronger nutritional standards can yield healthier school snacks for this growing population at high risk of obesity, according to a new package of research materials released today by Salud America! The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Research Network to Prevent Obesity Among Latino Children. The new Salud America! “Healthier School Snacks & Latino Kids” research materials, which can be found at www.salud-america.org, include:
• A research review with the latest science;
• An issue brief (lay summary of the review);
• An infographic; and
• An animated video This is the first of six new research material packages to be released over the summer by ...
Testicular cancer is most common in white men. But as the overall testicular cancer rate rises in the U.S., the greatest increase is occurring among Latino men, according to a researcher, Hispanically Speaking News reports. The report indicates that Dr. Scott Eggener, an associate professor of surgery at the University of Chicago, examining testicular cancer incidence from 1992-2009 and found that: In 1992, 5.7 of every 100,000 men had testicular cancer; that number rose to 6.8/100,000 in 2009. In 1992, 4 of every 100,000 Hispanic men were affected; that number rose to 6.3/100,000 in 2009. “The incidence of testicular cancer appears to be increasing very slowly but steadily among virtually all groups that we studied,” said Eggener, according to the news report. “The novel ...
Mariano, a Hispanic living in Illinois, started smoking at 15. At age 47, Mariano woke up one morning feeling sick and dizzy. He was sweating a lot. He went to the doctor, who told him his blood pressure was extremely high. He was hospitalized that day. Three days later, he had open heart surgery to replace blocked blood vessels in his heart. "I smoked my last cigarette the day I was told I needed heart surgery," he said. He hasn't smoked since. "I was given a second chance to live." Mariano, who loves to cook and noticed that he has more energy since he quit smoking, is part of a new effort from the CDC and the National Latino Tobacco Control Network (NLTCN) to raise awareness among Latinos about the dangers of tobacco use and second-hand smoke. The campaign, Tips from Smokers, ...
Health disparities are differences in incidence, prevalence, mortality, and burden of diseases and other adverse health conditions that exist among specific U.S. population groups. Latinos, for example, suffer various disparities in cancer, chronic disease, obesity and other conditions. To learn more, visit the Institute for Health Promotion Research at The UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, the team behind SaludToday. You also can check out the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Health Disparities & Inequalities Report. The report analyzes recent trends and ongoing variations in health disparities and ...
Hispanic, Black, and Asian Americans are less likely than whites to believe they will get cancer, even though they are actually more likely to develop cancer and die from it, according to a new study in the American Journal of Health Promotion, HealthDay reports. Study researchers surveyed people about their perceptions of their cancer risk. They also found Hispanics were less likely than whites and blacks to believe they could take steps to reduce their risk of cancer. "There is a need for consistent cancer prevention messages and screening recommendations, as well as opportunities to increase education on cancer prevention among all populations," study senior author B. Lee Green of the Moffitt Cancer Center, said in a center news release, HealthDay reported. "These efforts will make ...
The New Mexico Department of Health has launched a new Spanish-language help line, 1-855-DEJELO-YA, to help New Mexicans to quit smoking. The service, called DejeloYa, is free to all participants and includes coaching to quit; a personalized quit plan; free nicotine patches, lozenges, or gum; and optional text messaging support. A Spanish-language website augments the phone ...
A trio of experts discussed Latino cancer issues, including disparities, cancer myths, and health care issues in a webinar April 4, 2013, for National Minority Health Month. Speakers were: Amelie Ramirez, DrPH, director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio
Elena Rios, MD, MPH, president of the National Hispanic Medical Association
Rosa Villoch-Santiago, MPA, director of health disparities for the American Cancer Society’s South Atlantic Division Ramirez indicated that the rising U.S. Latino population faces heightened risks of certain cancer, compared to whites, according to a Saludify news report. Ramirez also said Latino cancers are expected to rise 142% by 2030. She also highlighted ways to reduce and prevent ...
