Inaugural Winter Issue

Newsletter

Volume 1, Edition 1 | February 2023

President Biden Appoints TLCI Founder and Executive Director to Key Cancer Advisory Board

The White House has announced the appointment of Ysabel Duron, Founder and Executive Director of The Latino Cancer Institute, to the National Cancer Advisory Board. The panel helps guide the Director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and compliments the Cancer Moonshot, which President Biden has tasked with ending cancer as we know it today. As a Latina and long-time patient and community advocate, Duron looks forward to amplifying the voices of racial/ethnic communities and other vulnerable populations in cancer research.

Major Grant Leads to Critical Asset Mapping Project Launch

The Latino Cancer Institute (TLCI) was fortunate to recruit three exceptional women this past year, thanks to the $25K Women’s Recovery Response grant from the California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls (CCSWG).

This was a first-of-its-kind opportunity grant dedicated to women’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The two student interns and one community health educator (CHW or promotora) hired through this grant were able to grow with us, enabling us to launch work on one of our major initiatives – TLCI’s Cancer Asset Map.

When this vital resource is completed, it will be a powerful platform for Latino patients, families and others to find psychosocial, financial, and additional types of support. More on that later, but first a word about our great crew. TLCI would not have been able to do this without the dedication, perseverance, and insight of Gema Zaragoza, Elizabeth Murguia and Susana Benison. The work they started will forever be a part of our mission to serve Latinos facing a cancer challenge even in the face of a horrific virus like COVID.

About Our CCSWG Interns and Community Health Workers

Gema Peña Zaragoza

Junior, Cal State San Bernardino

1st Generation College Student

My time with The Latino Cancer Institute was very impactful and meaningful to me! It was remarkable to see and be a part of a team of powerful Latinas actively bringing change to help our Latinx and Hispanic communities. Especially growing up in San Bernardino, a highly under-resourced city, I’m glad to know that our communities are beginning to receive what they need. 

Throughout my time with TLCI, I gained an abundance of knowledge about cancer among the Latinx community. And if there is anything I will take from my internship, it is that it is never too late or early to begin doing the work to bring positive change to a system.

Lessening the inequities and addressing disparities that the Latino and Hispanic community face within healthcare is challenging, as I’ve seen first-hand as a patient with a chronic condition, but it is not impossible. I am thankful to TLCI and the CCSWG for providing the funds to benefit me and my peers in participating in this opportunity, and to be a part of this powerful movement.

Elizabeth Murguia

Masters in Public Health

Loma Linda University

 

If I can take one thing from this internship it would be that cancer is not a death sentence. I realized that there are innumerable disparities for certain cancers among Latinos, and assistance in overcoming these barriers is scarce. With equitable resources for diverse communities, death can shift to survivorship. What I valued the most from this internship is the commitment, dedication, drive, and passion to connect the Latinx community with bilingual resources to fight cancer.

It is inspiring to see that there are people who recognize prominent health issues and are vocalizing these concerns in the appropriate networks. The Latino Cancer Institute is comprised of highly knowledgeable, capable, and influential Latina women. Working with them was unimaginably rewarding. I am grateful to these women and CCSWG for paving the way for future Latinas in fields where we are the minority.

Side Note: Kudos to Elizabeth for her Scholarship Award from the National Hispanic Health Foundation.

“Help, heal and make a difference, while learning.”

-Susana B. Benison

Susana B. Benison

CHW/Promotora de Salud

Breast Cancer Survivor

As a Latina and survivor of breast cancer, it was only natural that I would want to help our community, where there is a need for connecting and communicating with Spanish-speaking cancer patients.

I was glad to have the opportunity to join the Latino Cancer Institute, collaborating with the Assets Map Project to find resources for Hispanic and Latino cancer patients and families, locating the necessary information, and providing help where it is needed.

TLCI also connected me with a number of webinars, events, and meetings, which allowed me to gain knowledge to make my service more effective. Joining TLCI and the project team meant a lot to me and renewed my motivation to be of service. It is thanks to CCSWG and their funding that we can make a difference in communities that are left behind, the minorities that are also part of our community, and for that I’m truly thankful.

Asset Map Project to Pilot Later This Year

Luckily, Susana Benison will stay on with us to continue development of the Cancer Asset Map, a project which has the potential to benefit scores of cancer patients, their caregivers, and others seeking resources and services for Latinos with cancer. (Here’s a peek at how the asset map will look when it’s launched!)

Critically, the map will identify those agencies that provide navigation, psychosocial and social services, nutrition and housing support and other forms of assistance. Importantly, we’ll identify those who offer aid and materials in Spanish.

There is abundant evidence that disparities are exacerbated among low income, under or uninsured and immigrant Spanish speaking cancer patients.

Our aim is to diminish the burden for those most vulnerable populations. The Asset Map, will be published online at latinocancerinstitute.org and will be available in English and Spanish. We expect agencies and organizations to utilize the Asset Map as well. Those who can meet certain criteria can apply to be on the Map.

Creating Liver Cancer Awareness in the Latino Community

During their very productive internship, Gema and Elizabeth created English/Spanish flyers to raise awareness about the increasing and troubling amount of liver disease in the Latino community.

Diet quality, physical inactivity and obesity are drivers of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which unaddressed, can lead to liver cancer. The flyers touched on these factors and the genetic variation PNPLA3, which predisposes 50% of Mexicans to fatty liver risk according to the latest research.                           

Flyer design by Gema Peña Zaragoza and Elizabeth Murguia, 2022.

This research also helped inform a panel hosted by the Global Liver Institute on October 20, 2022, that featured Executive Director, Ysabel Duron. Watch the replay of the Hispanic and Latina/x Health Equity Roundtable here.        

Hispanic and Latinx Health Equity Roundtable.

Interesting new research made possible by the NIH/All of Us Research Program discovered that birthplace is linked to cancer risk in Hispanic communities including liver cancer. The research published in The American Surgeon, July 2022, studied data from 60 thousand Hispanic/Latino participants shared with All of Us, including 50% native born and 50% born outside the U.S.

Key points in the study:



• Liver cancer rates were nearly twice as high in Hispanic participants born outside of the United States.

• U.S. born Hispanic participants who had stomach, cervical, and liver cancers were younger than non-U.S. born participants.

• Social and economic differences between Hispanic participants born inside and outside of the United States may contribute to lower screening rates, poorer access to care, and higher cancer rates.

Engaging in clinical trials and sharing health data from across our subpopulations of Latinos can help us shine the spotlight on the disproportionate cancer and other health challenges that our communities face. By using our voice and networking with partners, TLCI can amplify the need for more research, investment in community engagement, and access to quality, precise care for all!

#CCSWG #WomenAreEssential #WomensRecoveryResponse #InvestInUs