by 
Share On Social!
Editor’s Note: This is the story of a graduate of the 2013 Èxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training program. Apply by March 7, 2014, for the 2014 Èxito! program.
Lani Alcaraz
Houston, Texas
Lani Alcaraz watched her father overcome many hardships and poverty in Mexico to become a doctor.
Encouraged by his success, Alcaraz developed her own sense of perseverance and ambition and earned a bachelor’s degree in microbiology (with a minor in chemistry) and her certificate in public health from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston in January 2010.
Alcaraz is currently pursuing her master’s in public health in epidemiology with a concentration in maternal and child health at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.
Her research experience and pursuit of more knowledge of Latino health disparities led her to apply for the Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training program, which offers a five-day summer institute and internships to encourage master’s-level students and health professionals to pursue a doctoral degree and a cancer research career.
After attending the 5-day Éxito! Summer Institute, Alcaraz felt she was equipped with the resources and professional networks to successfully apply to a doctoral program.
Éxito!, a program funded by the National Cancer Institute and directed by the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at The UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, will select 20 master’s-level students and health professionals from across the nation to attend a five-day summer institute June 2-6, 2014, in San Antonio, offering research information, tools, tips, role models and motivation to encourage participants to pursue a doctoral degree and a career studying how cancer affects Latinos differently. Participants also are eligible to apply for one of five $3,250 internships. Apply here.
By The Numbers
25.1
percent
of Latinos remain without health insurance coverage
