Involving Minority Communities in Cancer Research

Research Description

One in four deaths in the US is attributable to cancer, and one in three Americans will eventually develop some form of cancer. Unfortunately, the burden of cancer is too often greater for the poor, ethnic minorities, and the uninsured than for the general population. Many ethnic minorities develop cancer more frequently than the majority of the U.S. white population. African-American males, for example, develop cancer 15 percent more frequently than white males. Some specific forms of cancer affect other ethnic minority communities at rates up to several times higher than national averages. Many ethnic minorities also experience poorer cancer survival rates than whites. American Indians, for example, experience the lowest cancer survival rates of any U.S. ethnic group.

This program studies cancer health disparities among Oklahoma's many minority populations. One initiative, the Oklahoma Community Networks Program, funded by the NCI, enables researchers to work with the Cherokee Nation, the Choctaw Nation and the Oklahoma Council of Black Mayors to help them identify cancer-causing risk factors and behaviors in their communities. Using this information can help empower minority groups to leverage their resources and develop community strategies to reduce the cancer burden.

Research Members

Name	Member Status	Department
Kermyt Anderson, PhD	Associate	Anthropology, OU Norman
Chris Aston, PhD	Associate	Arthritis and Immunology, OMRF
Laure Beebe, PhD	Full	Public Health, OUHSC
Janis Campbell, PhD	Affiliate	OK State Health Department
Vicki Cleaver, PhD	Associate	Public Health, OUHSC
Mary Katherine Crabb, PhD	Associate	Anthropology, OU Norman
Morris Foster, PhD	Full	Anthropology, OU Norman
Michael Givel, PhD	Associate	Political Science, OU Norman
John Mulvihill, PhD	Full	Pediatrics, OUHSC