enBloom Goes to the Carnival

After spending last week focusing on cancer awareness among minorities, I decided to submit one of those articles to the Cancer Research Blog Carnival. It was accepted. (Yeeeesssss!) It’s been five quiet months of blogging and now I just might be starting to make a friend or two out there. Each month Cancer Research presents what’s new and now from cancer biology, cancer genetics, cancer therapeutics to cancer diagnostics and patient care. Head on over to Highlight HEALTH and check out the 21st edition of this blog carnival which is the standard for all things cancer. Be sure to read all the articles, the Health Advocate is in such excellent company.

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Cancer Risk, Ethnicity & Race: Is It All in the Genes

Two recently published cancer studies reveal differences in the severity of cancer (specifically breast and colorectal) between black Americans and other racial or ethnic populations are based in genetic variations. I think we should pause a moment and recognize that today is National Day, an observance popular in K-12 education to recognize the day that the research scientists at NIH completed sequencing of the human genome. The knowledge gained from that tremendous endeavor has informed the physicians and scientists is countless labs since and the current findings in the disparities between the burden of illness suffered by blacks with breast or colorectal cancer tumors is no different.

Dr. Carol Rosenberg and her colleges at Boston University School of Medicine have discovered that cancer tumors lacking genetic expression for estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors and HER-2 (human epidermal growth factor), so called “triple-negative” tumors were more common among black women. Specifically, their study of 415 women (36% non-Hispanic white, 43% black, 10% Hispanic, and 10% other) revealed that black women have a three times greater risk of having triple-negative breast cancer tumors as compared to non-Hispanic whites. Triple-negative phenotype tumors (which make up 15% of all invasive breast cancers) have been associated with poor prognosis and low 5-year survival rates. The implications are significant to understanding the prevalence of an increased burden of illness and death suffered by black women developing breast cancer.

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Humpday Humor

by Steve Kelley, originally uploaded by the Health Advocate.

It is simply undeniable, our diets really do affect our health and overall risk for disease. This week, cartoonist Steve Kelley reminds us.

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Do Ethnic Minorities Have Less Access to Cancer Screening

The most commonly occurring cancers vary greatly according to race and ethnicity. For example:

While the gap (as compared to non-Hispanic whites has narrowed since 1991) African Americans are more likely to develop and die from cancer than any other racial or ethnic group. The most common cancers among men in 2009 are projected to be prostate (34%), lung (16%), and colorectal (10%) cancer, and among women, breast (25%), lung (12%), and colorectal (11%) cancer. For all cancer types, African Americans are far more likely to be diagnosed in advanced stages of disease, when the cancer is less treatable. African Americans are also less likely than whites to survive 5 years after a diagnosis, regardless of cancer type and stage of diagnosis.

Cancers associated with viral infection are the most common caners in Hispanics/Latinos. Women have the second highest number of cases of cervical cancer (which is often caused by humanpapliloma virus) while cases of liver cancer (which is often caused by the hepatitis virus) are twice as high in Hispanic men and women as in non-Hispanic whites.

Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders are more likely to develop and die from both liver and stomach cancers than all other racial or ethnic groups (except in the case of stomach cancer where their prevalence and death rates are second to those of African Americans).

Medical researchers focusing on areas of health care disparities continue investigations to elucidate these figures. The interrelationship between multiple factors continues to yield reasons that are complex.

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Do Race & Ethnicity Affect Cancer Risk

Racial and ethnic minority populations continue to grow such that by mid-century, Latino, black and Asian populations are expected to represent the majority of people living in the US, according to the Census Bureau. This is already the case for the nation’s largest metropolitan areas and it is increasingly becoming the case in smaller communities fueled by the growing Latino population. In light of this fact, minority health and health disparities among racial and ethnic minorities is not a issue for special populations but rather an issue that concerns us all especially as we examine the health status of the population as a whole. Nevertheless, the third week in April (19-25) is set aside as National Cancer Minority Awareness Week.

Do race and ethnicity affect cancer risk?

Each year, cancer statistics continue to show that minority groups are more likely than the general population to develop and/or die from certain types of cancer. As researchers continue to unravel the multiple contributing factors to this issue there are things that individuals can do for themselves.

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National Cancer Control Month

Featured Health Observance. April is Cancer Control Month. Since 1938, this annual proclamation has given Americans an opportunity to focus on advances against cancer, as well as, rededicate themselves to fighting the disease both through pioneering research and prevention. President Obama observed:

“As researchers work daily to better understand this disease, Americans can take steps to decrease their risk of developing cancer. Individuals of all ages should seek regular and appropriate check-ups.

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Should Informed Consent Include Disparities Data

When teaching students health care ethics, I always impress upon them the fact that unless the patient truly understands the procedure and the risk, their job is not done. That is to say, you cannot have consent unless it is informed.

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