Cervical Cancer Home Page

Provides news and information about the risks, diagnosis and treatment of cervical cancer.

Cervical cancer — Comprehensive overview covers signs, symptoms, causes, treatment and the cervical cancer vaccine.

STUDY IDENTIFIES BARRIERS TO BREAST CANCER CARE AMONG HISPANIC WOMEN

By Anonymous

CHICAGO, IL October 20 2003--Although the rate of breast cancer among Hispanic women in the United States is lower than among Caucasians or African Americans, breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in this patient population. This result is largely because Hispanic women often are diagnosed after breast cancer has advanced locally or has metastasized to the bone, according to Amelie Ramirez, Dr.PH, associate director for community research, San Antonio Cancer Institute and associate professor of medicine, Baylor College of Medicine.

Contributing to the increased mortality is lack of compliance with breast care, Dr. Ramirez explained at the 2003 Clinical Congress of the American College of Surgeons. According to a survey commissioned by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, most Caucasians and a sizable proportion of African-American women undergo regular mammographic screening, but only 38 percent of Hispanic women over the age of 40 have yearly breast examinations, Dr. Ramirez observed. Even after they are diagnosed with the disease, Hispanic women tend to skip followup breast care appointments. Surgeons who treat women with breast cancer at the University of Texas Health Science Center may never see a Hispanic woman who has been referred for treatment after an abnormal mammogram, or they may see these women once or not for several months at a time, according to Alexander Miller, MD, director of surgical oncology and of the Cancer Prevention and Risk Assessment Clinic at the Cancer Treatment and Research Center, San Antonio, TX.

To begin to understand what keeps Hispanic women from participating in breast care, Drs. Miller and Ramirez conducted a pilot study focusing on the barriers to compliance with treatment recommendations. The study, which surveyed 117 Hispanic women with breast cancer and 78 of their family members, showed that fear was a principal factor. Ninety-one percent of women and 91 percent of their families reported that patients were afraid of the recommendations that surgeons would make for treatment.

Lack of health insurance was another critical element. Seventy-five percent of women and 80 percent of families said the high cost of health care was a major reason why patients did not follow breast cancer care recommendations. “Hispanic women may have to choose between coming in for breast cancer care follow-up or putting food on the table,” Dr. Ramirez asserted. “Hispanic women also tend to put themselves a little lower on the totem pole in terms of family needs,” she added. So rather than devote scarce household resources for their own health care, “Hispanic women tend to procrastinate or avoid coming in for a followup visit,” she said.

Other reasons for not complying with breast cancer care identified in the study were the inability to understand the physician (reported by 81 percent of women and 77 percent of their families), a previous bad experience with a physician (reported by 79 percent of women and 78 percent of families), and inability to take off time from work (reported by 75 percent of women and 58 percent of families).

The findings from this study are leading Drs. Miller and Ramirez to explore ways of eliminating obstacles to breast cancer treatment among Hispanic women. One is by increasing awareness among physicians and surgeons about women’s fears. “Physicians need to understand that these patients come in with a lot of trepidation, so they need to take extra time to explain the risks of the disease and of not seeking treatment, and help these women in making decisions about available treatment options,” Dr. Ramirez said.

Also important for physicians to understand is the importance of involving family mem-bers in treatment discussions. Dr. Ramirez pointed out that Hispanic women bond closely with their families and therefore may welcome having family members involved in discussions about treatment options. “We recognize that the health care system can be very intimidating. We want to recruit family members to be supportive of Hispanic women because of the strong family structure and the availability of family members to serve as a translators or give patients a ride
to see their doctors and provide other help to get patients what they need,” Dr. Miller explained.

Because of the number of women and families in the study who reported having difficulty understanding investigators, Drs. Miller and Ramirez hope to provide more training in cultural competency, help physicians communicate more effectively with Hispanic patients, increase the number of bilingual health care providers, and hire more translators.

To increase the chances that Hispanic women will remain in the health care loop, the investigators involved in the study are considering strengthening ties between breast surgeons and other physicians who treat Hispanic women. “Surgeons know that a patient is supposed
to be coming in because they have a referral. We could do a better job of connecting surgeons with the physicians who make the initial referral to be sure a woman is not lost to followup,” Dr. Ramirez maintained. A simple callback system—whereby the physician’s offices keep in contact with each other and the patient who has been referred for a surgical consult—is one possible method that could be explored, Dr. Ramirez suggested.

Additionally, physicians and community groups should be encouraging Hispanic women to participate in existing breast cancer screening programs, such as broad-based community efforts to offer mammograms regardless of a patient’s ability to pay, as well as public assistance programs and other sources of financial support provided for health care, explained Dr. Miller.

In addition to physician education, public education also needs to be tailored to Hispanic women, Dr. Ramirez added. “The general health messages are not reaching the Latina community. We need to help these women take a more proactive role in their care by arming them with information and questions to ask the doctor. We also need to provide more information about positive outcomes of cancer treatment to reduce the fears that these women have,” she said.

“If we want to get to the point of providing a potential cure for breast cancer, we have to do something on the front end to get Hispanic women into the health care system sooner and make sure they stay in the system once they get there,” Dr. Miller concluded.

Also participating in the study were Fabiola Aparicio-Ting, MPH, Sandra San Miguel, MS, and Bradley Pollock, PhD.



This article courtesy of http://signsofcervicalcancer.info/.
You may freely reprint this article on your website or in
your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author
name and URL remain intact.

The Pampered Chef joins forces with the American Cancer Society™ to Help Whip Cancer®!

By Anonymous

Kansas City, KS April 1, 2004--At The Pampered Chef, we feel it is crucial to promote the importance of breast cancer early detection. To support this effort, between May 1 and 31, independent Kitchen Consultants will raise funds from the sale of two limited-edition products and special Help Whip Cancer Kitchen Show® Fund-raisers.

Funds raised by the Help Whip Cancer campaign are distributed to breast cancer early detection and education programs across the country through the 19 American Cancer Society™ Division offices.

Since the campaign's beginning in 2000, The Pampered Chef, Kitchen Consultants and customers have raised over $1 million to Help Whip Cancer!

To learn more about The Pampered Chef Kitchen Shows and how you can participate in this campaign, contact Independent Kitchen Consultant Symone Martin by calling 816-560-1691.



This article courtesy of http://signsofcervicalcancer.info/.
You may freely reprint this article on your website or in
your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author
name and URL remain intact.

Brides for Cancer offers bridal items and way to help kids with cancer

By Anonymous

July 23, 2004 -- BRIDES INVITED TO SUPPORT CANCER RECOVERY FOUNDATION OF CANADA WITH DONATIONS OF USED BRIDAL ITEMS. Brides and their friends and family are making a difference in the lives of children with cancer by donating used or new wedding items to Brides for Cancer Recovery. In conjunction with Cancer Recovery Foundation of Canada, the proceeds from the sales of the bridal items will help pay for camp scholarships for children in remission.

Brides for Cancer was created by newlywed Helen Sweet after she received a phone call from Cancer Recovery asking for donations to send pediatric cancer patients to camp while planning her wedding. She readily accepted, and saw an opening to put her used bridal items to a great cause via the internet, to brides-to-be in return for a donation to the Foundation in order to benefit the children in need.

“Part of my interest and motivation was due to the fact that I lost my best friend to cancer when we were both 9 years old, and she didn’t have this opportunity. I thought about the difference it would have made to her in her last year of life, to have such a healthful, fun and revitalizing experience like a week at camp,” said Sweet. “I have also lost my cousin Jean, and so many other family members to cancer, that I would like my wedding day to make an ongoing difference in the lives of children and adults battling cancer.”

In addition to Sweet’s own wedding items, others have contributed, and both brides and bridal parties are encouraged to donate their wedding items to Brides for Cancer. The response has been overwhelming.

Kim Jarvis donated a plume pen that no longer matched her wedding colors. ” I just realized that I have something to offer already even though my wedding isn't until 2006! We lost my Dad to cancer back in 2001 so the wonderful thing you are doing is very close to my heart,“ she said.

Another supporter of the Project said, “How wonderful you are. I really hope you succeed at this. My wedding is still a year away but I would like to donate as much as I can afterwards. I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer 8 months ago and had to have a hysterectomy 7 months ago. I've finished my treatment now. Words cannot express how close your cause is to my heart."

Heather Stewart said, “I have to say that not only did I get the beautiful touch-up shoes (that would have cost me about $100 in the store!) I wanted for the wedding but the money I donated to get them is going to a good cause! This is a really awesome way to get the wedding stuff you need with a great outcome for both sides! I would highly recommend getting your wedding items this way and I hope to have some items to donate down the road!"

“Let’s make our wedding days make a real difference,” said Sweet.
“We offer a huge variety of bridal items for brides-to-be to use in exchange for a contribution to Cancer Recovery Foundation of Canada,” she added.

Sweet hopes to grow the inventory and become more local through volunteers across Canada who would be interested in helping the cause and possibly grow the program into the United States.

Items include wedding dresses, shoes, shawls, cake toppers, purses, jewelry and much more.

Free pickup and delivery is available in the GTA, and brides are more than welcome to drop by and see and/or try on items. For out-of-town participants, free shipping (inbound and outbound) is offered to encourage donations from individuals outside the GTA.

For more information on donating or receiving wedding items from Brides for Cancer, please visit www.cancerrecovery.ca/brides.htm. Wedding pictures and brief descriptions are welcome to recognize your contributions.

Contact: Helen Sweet, Brides for Cancer    
July 22, 2004
Recovery (416-423-7980) or                         brides@sympatico.ca




This article courtesy of http://signsofcervicalcancer.info/.
You may freely reprint this article on your website or in
your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author
name and URL remain intact.