Posts tagged colorectal cancer

Video: Latinos & Colorectal Cancer

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2 months ago
by admin in

Colorectal cancer risk among Hispanics increasing with acculturation, according to a recent study.

Watch this new Spanish video featuring Dr. Jorge Gomez of the National Cancer Institute as he explains what tests are available, when you should begin to take the tests and how often you should have them.

VIDEOS: ‘No Excuses’ for Not Getting Colorectal Cancer Screening

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1 year ago
by admin in ,

What’s your excuse?

A new bilingual public service announcement (PSA) from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) addresses common excuses and misconceptions that lead people to delay or avoid getting screened for colorectal cancer.

The PSA features men and women who voice their personal reasons for not being screened, while an off-camera announcer responds by providing facts about colorectal cancer screening and its importance. Adults ages 50-59, Hispanics, and persons with lower income, less than a high school education, and without health insurance were least likely to have been screened for colorectal cancer, according to CDC statistics.

Watch in English:

Watch in Spanish:

New Project to Offer Cancer Screening to Underserved Latinos in San Antonio

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1 year ago
by admin in ,

Two University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio researchers today were awarded a total of $4.7 million by the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT).
These awards for cancer prevention, along with $2.9 million to University Health System, make San Antonio the largest recipient of funds in this CPRIT funding cycle—28% the $26.3 million awarded.

Dr. Cynthia Mojica of the Institute for Health Promotion Research at The UT Health Science Center at San Antonio

Dr. Cynthia Mojica, assistant professor of epidemiology and biostatistics in the Institute for Health Promotion Research at the UT Health Science Center, will use a $2 million award to partner with federally qualified health center CentroMed and community organizations to offer breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screening to San Antonio residents otherwise unable to afford them.

“This grant allows us to greatly expand what we’ve been doing in terms of giving people in underserved populations the opportunity to be screened,” Dr. Mojica said.

A $2.7 million grant to Dr. Gail Tomlinson, interim director of the Greehey Children’s Cancer Research Institute (GCCRI), allows her team to help health-care providers map out their patients’ cancer risks and to share information with the community about the importance of understanding family history. They will work with CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Health System and other groups. The grant will also support screening services for people at high risk who might not otherwise have access.

“A family history can yield strong clues to understanding a person’s risk for cancer,” Dr. Tomlinson said.

The awards reflect the kind of work that goes on at the Health Science Center, said Dr. William L. Henrich, president of the Health Science Center.

“Extending better cancer screening opportunities and the latest expertise in genetic counseling to the people at greatest risk here in South Texas is the perfect expression of our mission at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio,” Dr. Henrich said.

CTRC director Dr. Ian M. Thompson Jr. noted that this is not the first time CPRIT has supported both researchers.

“Prevention is one of the most important ways to fight cancer,” said Dr. Thompson, professor of urology in the School of Medicine at the Health Science Center. “Dr. Tomlinson’s genetic research will give us the capability to bring a person’s potential cancer risk into sharper focus, helping them make decisions in advance to prevent the disease. Dr. Mojica’s community outreach will give our friends and neighbors the opportunity to be screened for cancers for which early diagnosis can mean a cancer cure. I am delighted that CPRIT continues to help them both help San Antonio and Texas.”

Depression Affects Preventive Health Screening among Latina Breast Cancer Survivors

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1 year ago
by admin in ,
Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez

Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez

Depression, in addition to other barriers, may prevent Latina breast cancer survivors from undergoing preventive health screening for colorectal and ovarian cancer, according to a new study.

The study was presented by Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, professor and director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, on Sept. 19, 2011, at the Fourth AACR Conference on The Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Washington D.C.

“Depression can make people more inattentive to potential risks to their health and more likely to ignore recommendations to reduce their risk,” Dr. Ramirez said.

Because depression is more common among breast cancer patients than the general population and because 10% of all new cancers are diagnosed in cancer survivors, Ramirez and colleagues examined the extent of depression among a group of 117 Latina breast cancer survivors to assess the barriers that were thwarting preventive health screening for colorectal and ovarian cancer.

All of the outcomes were self-reported and all patients were screened for depression.

“The most important thing that we found was that Hispanic breast cancer survivors were more depressed than Hispanics in the general population, and that they were not following recommendations to continue their other cancer screening behaviors,” Dr. Ramirez said.

Of the women who were surveyed, about one-third met the criteria for depression. Only five had been screened for both colorectal and ovarian cancers and about 60% had not been screened for one cancer or the other.

Ramirez said that a broad-based preventive strategy is needed to increase screening and healthy behaviors among this population.

“Regardless of depression or not, we need to work with these women to help them understand that they need to get more involved with their health care,” she said. “We also have to get a better handle on the underpinnings of depression among cancer survivors.”

Read more here.

CDC: Too Many Cancers Spotted Too Late (Including Cervical Cancer Among Latinas)

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2 years ago
by admin in

Although screening tests are widely available, many cancers aren’t diagnosed until the disease is well-advanced and, therefore, less treatable, a new U.S. government report finds, HealthDay reports.

Almost one-half of colorectal cancers and cervical cancers and one-third of breast cancers in the U.S. are detected at a late stage, according to the report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The report also found that Latinas ages 50-79 have the highest rates of late-stage cervical cancer.

Yet, if caught early, these three cancers have very high survival rates.

“People need to be aware of what they need to have done medically and follow-up with their providers,” said report co-author Dr. Lisa Richardson, associate director for science in CDC’s Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, to HealthDay.

For more on the report, go here.

Watch in English or Spanish or below to see why Latinas should get the HPV vaccine:

Many Hispanics Lack Access to Colon Cancer Screening

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3 years ago
by admin in ,

Colorectal cancer screening tests, such as colonoscopies, are harder to find in areas of the United States with large Hispanic populations, new research in the journal Cancer suggests, according to a HealthDay article.

This could explain why Hispanics are less likely to get screened than whites, study authors say.

The researchers found that Hispanics typically lived in counties with less access to the screening tests. Residents were more likely to be screened if the tests were more available in their regions.

The findings suggest “that interventions designed to reduce disparities in the use of colorectal cancer screening or stage at diagnosis should consider not only improving local capacity for screening but also address other characteristics of the areas that may limit the dissemination of information about the importance of colorectal cancer screening,” the study authors wrote.

Now watch our inspirational PSA here or below on Latino men and the decision for colorectal cancer screening.

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