Cancer and how the disease disproportionately affects the African American community is the focus of the upcoming event – Cancer Outreach Workshop: Prevention, Detection, Intervention, set to take place Saturday, March 24, 9 a.m.-12 noon at the Peace Apostolic Church, Inc., 21224 South Figueroa in Carson, CA.
The workshop, which will include on-site mammogram screenings at no cost to participants, is free and open to the public. Presented by the California Oncology Research Institute (CORI), in partnership with The Global Wellness Project, four doctors, all cancer specialists, will participate in discussions on not only the various cancers (colon, breast, prostate and general oncology), but also on prevention, detection and intervention. A question/answer session will follow.
Scheduled to speak are Dr. Ronald Hurst and Dr. Anton Bilchik, directors of CORI, as well as Dr. Jenny Ru and Dr. Thomas Johnson.
“I realized that we were presenting our cancer research around the world hoping to improve standards for cancer care, however this information was not getting to the people that needed it the most – underserved people particularly in the inner city,” said Bilchik, co-founder and Medical Director for CORI. “I also realized that so many of these people are only 20 minutes from where I live.”
Dr. Bilchik, who has been honored by the American Cancer Society and the American College of Surgeons, added that there are disparities with just about every cancer.
“The outcomes in African Americans is worse for breast cancer, colon cancer, pancreas and stomach cancer to name but a few,” said Bilchik, who was recently listed as one of “Americas Top Surgeons” for 10 years in a row. “This is likely due to socioeconomic differences and lack of access to health care.”
Dr. Ronald Hurst said he designed the program with a primary focus of getting cancer information to the community. “We do four workshops a year. Breast, colon and prostate are the three cancers we focus on.” said Hurst, the Director of Clinical Research for CORI. We use community venues to reach out to a broad cross section of Los Angeles and nearby cities. We want to make it easy for everyone to get the information.”
Dr. Hurst, F.A.C.S., specializes in breast, colorectal, melanoma, and sarcoma cancers as well as general surgery. A leader in his field, his research has focused on tumor immunology.
“The African American community should know not to be afraid,” said Hurst. “Fear becomes our greatest obstacle. Men don’t come because we think we’re invincible. As doctors, in our best state we provide reactionary medicine. We need to get ahead of cancer. We’ve got to get to the people before they get cancer.”
“There are about 250,000 new cases of prostate cancer diagnosed in this country each year,” said Dr. Thomas Johnson, an urologist since 1987. “About 20 percent are African American. Historically prostate cancer has been more aggressive in the African American community. Our charge is to try to get Black men to get screened. For some reason Black men are reluctant to get involved in the preventive aspects of their health. If nothing is bothering a guy, they don’t want to be bothered.”
Statistics show that minorities experience higher rates of illness and death from not only various cancers, but also health conditions such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, asthma, hepatitis B and obesity.
“The Global Wellness Project (GWP) is pleased to partner with CORI to bring life saving cancer education to our community,” said Angela de Joseph, GWP executive director. “We are committed to bringing the highest quality of health education and free screenings into the African American and Latino communities. We have partnered with CORI, one of the foremost leaders in cancer research, to produce a series of dynamic cancer awareness workshops to faith-based organizations throughout the Southern California region.”
CORI, a non-profit, is committed to curing cancer through innovative research, early detection, novel treatments, and education through community outreach efforts. Cancer Outreach Workshop: Prevention, Detection, Intervention, is the second in a series of workshops aimed at the African American community. The first of The Global Wellness Project’s 2012 Wellness Series, was Your History, Your Heart, Your Health, which focused on heart disease. The seminar was held earlier this month at Arise Christian Center in Los Angeles.
The Global Wellness Project, a non-profit media company, is currently producing a four-part series of documentaries called State of Emergency: Tackling Black Men’s Health in response to the alarming statistics pertaining to the health issues plaguing African American men nationwide.
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