From Genes to Social Science: Impact of the Simplistic Interpretation of Race, Ethnicity, and Culture on Cancer Outcome

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Date

2001

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Citation

Kagawa-Singer, Marjorie (2001) From Genes to Social Science: Impact of the Simplistic Interpretation of Race, Ethnicity, and Culture on Cancer Outcome. Cancer, 91 (1). pp. 226-232.

Abstract

Over the last 30 years, dramatic advances have been made in understanding the cell biology of cancer and the genetic changes involved in oncogenesis. Many tumors now are curable and overall, cancer mortality has decreased significantly. Cancer has been transformed from a primarily fatal disease into a chronic condition. To accelerate these trends, the American Cancer Society has set its goals for the year 2015 to reduce the burden of cancer in this country. The goals are to decrease mortality by 50% and decrease the rate of incidence by 25%, as well as increase the quality of life for all individuals with cancer. However, to achieve these goals, changes must occur on two levels, in cancer control research and programming. Greater resources must be directed toward social and behavioral research, and conceptual clarity must be developed so that refinements can be made in the methodologies used to study the effects of cultural differences on health behavior. This paper provides a broad overview of the complex, intricate, and interrelated interaction that is emerging as a salient area of study. To our knowledge, the information to date is in disparate disciplines and needs to be integrated within an overarching framework for cancer control in diverse populations.

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