RE: disparities and cancer

[Guest guest]

Tina,

Thank you

for this great summary. For those

of us who did not go to the ICC conference this year, your reference will prove

useful. I will download the full

ICC report.

Thanks

again,

Islara Souto

Senior Research

Associate IV

Population

Research Core

Cancer Control

& Prevention

Sylvester Cancer

Center at the University of Miami

305-243-1120

-----Original

Message-----

From: Tina Castañares

[mailto:tina.castanares@...]

Sent: Wednesday, March 31, 2004

12:37 AM

AdHocFarmworkersegroups;

Migrant Health Research egroup; Migrant Health News Group

Subject: [ ]

disparities and cancer

Of

interest --

tina.castanares@...

GROUP ISSUES ACTION PLAN TO ADDRESS

DISPARITIES IN CARE

To address the fact that minorities and poor people have higher rates of

cancer and die more frequently and quickly from it, the Intercultural

Cancer Council (ICC) Caucus has issued a 12-step action plan on how the

Bush administration and Congress can begin to address the disparities.

The ICC Caucus also released a new report, From Awareness to Action:

Eliminating the Unequal Burden of Cancer, in conjunction with the

group's biennial Symposium on Minorities, the Medically Underserved, and

Cancer.

The report provides the most up-to-date information about disparities in

cancer rates and death among minorities and the poor in the US. " There

are major disparities, " the report concludes, " in access to quality

cancer care at all points in the process -- from screenings and

diagnosis to access to state-of-the-art cancer therapies and end-of-life

palliative care. "

In spite of the fact that some estimates predict that half of all

cancers could be prevented through lifestyle changes, the report finds

major disparities in cancer prevention. Tobacco use, for example,

accounts for 30% of all cancer deaths and 87% of lung cancer deaths. But

more people in low income households (less than $25,000) smoke than

those with higher incomes, by a ratio of 35.5% to 26.5%. The report also

notes that the incidence of smoking is rising among African American and

Asian American youth.

The report cites as " disturbing " the fact that minorities and the

poor

are less likely to be screened for cancer, resulting in more late-stage

cancers when finally diagnosed. One third of American Indian and Alaska

Native women over 60 have never had a breast exam, and only 38% of

Hispanic women 40 or older have regular mammograms. Further, the report

notes that pain management and palliative care at the end of life are

two areas " where disparities in cancer care are significant. "

The report calls " prevailing societal and institutional racism " a

major

factor behind the disparities. The ICC Caucus's 12-step program calls on

the Bush administration and Congress to:

* Increase funding for addressing health disparities, screening programs

and Medicare demonstration projects that provide access to oral

chemotherapy drugs and restore Medicare reimbursement for cancer

treatment and care in all settings this year;

* Increase educational efforts about cancer and make tobacco control a

priority;

* Enhance data collection efforts that describe the racial and

socio-economic diversity in cancer care;

* Eliminate barriers to pain management and palliative care and enact a

Patient's Bill of Rights to provide comprehensive protection to cancer

patients in managed care plans;

* Increase federal funding to support greater access to cancer

screening, and

* Establish universal health insurance and implement it by 2010.

More information is available from ICC's website at www.iccnetwork.org.

(PR Newswire, 3/24)

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