Redes En Acción: The National Latino Cancer Research Network is a National Cancer Institute-funded initiative to combat cancer among Latinos. A multi-faceted approach to cancer prevention and control, Redes En Acción has built a nationwide network of community-based organizations, research institutions, government health agencies and the public. Core activities include promoting training and research opportunities for Latino students and researchers, generating research projects on key Latino cancer issues, and supporting cancer awareness activities within the Latino community. Now, under the NCI's new Community Networks Program (CNP) initiative, Redes is expanding its efforts to fight cancer in Latino communities throughout the United States by working to expand the existing Redes En Acción organizational infrastructure into a sustainable network that will reduce cancer health disparities through cancer education, research and training within and among the U.S. and Puerto Rico, with research on policy and organizational change and on the effects of innovative interventions to reduce disparities.
Redes helps children find state-of-the-art therapies
Patient Navigator
Cynthia Wittenburg
Redes En Acción is spearheading a new National Cancer Institute-supported effort to boost enrollment of Latino children in leukemia clinical trials.
Based in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas, the project will seek to increase recruitment of patients from the heavily Hispanic United States-Mexico border region into pediatric hematology / oncology studies.
“We have an opportunity to help the underserved and disadvantaged Latino population in the Lower Rio Grande Valley attain cutting-edge therapies,” said Amelie G. Ramirez, project principal investigator. “We anticipate boosting recruitment rates for critical childhood and adolescent leukemia clinical trials by 20 percent or more.”
Dr. Ramirez is principal investigator of Redes En Acción and Director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UTHSCSA).
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Redes Latino Cancer Experts Directory Now Online
A new resource is now available for the news media across the country. The Redes En Acción Latino Cancer Experts Directory is online and can be accessed through this Web site. A button on the home page (on the menu at left) will take you to a search engine, where Latino cancer experts nationwide can be located. The directory consists of physicians, researchers and others who have expertise in cancers and cancer issues of particular significance to Latinos. Experts in the directory are bilingual and available for interview by Spanish- and English-language media on a wide range of topics.Also Available Online . . .
- Breast Cancer and Hispanic Women Telephone Education Workshop: Redes En Acción is partnering with CancerCare Connect to offer a Telephone Education Workshop scheduled for Tuesday, June 9, 2009, from 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time. CancerCare Connect ’s free Telephone Education Workshops are a way for people to learn about cancer-related issues from the convenience of their home or office. Leading experts in oncology provide the most up-to-date information on the telephone. Workshop topics include:
- Breast Cancer in Hispanic Women
- Current Standard of Care and New Treatment Approaches
- Hispanic Women and Clinical Trials
- Practical Tips for Symptom and Pain Management
- Concerns of Hispanic Women Living with Breast Cancer
- Communicating with Your Health Care Team
- Questions for Our Panel of Experts
To participate, all you need is a telephone. Participation is free, and no phone charges apply. There are three ways to register: click on this link to download a registration form to mail to CancerCare, call 1-800-813-HOPE (4673), or register online at www.cancercare.org/tew. After you have registered, you will receive additional information. The Telephone Education Workshop with be conducted entirely in Spanish.
- APOS 6th Annual Conference: The American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS) continues to build on its success as the only multidisciplinary society in the United States dedicated to advancing psychosocial oncology with the 2009 APOS 6th Annual Conference — a must-attend event for all professionals working in the field. Earlybird registration is now available for the conference, which is dedicated to Integrating Psychosocial Research and Practice in Quality Cancer Care: Setting the Standard. Please go to www.apos-society.org for more information on APOS and the conference.
- LAF Launches Spanish-Language Website: The Lance Armstrong Foundation recently launched www.livestrong.org/espanol. This Spanish-language website provides information on the common physical, emotional and day-to-day concerns of Hispanic/Latino cancer survivors. In addition to cancer information, the website includes sixteen videos of Hispanic/Latino cancer survivors sharing their experiences with cancer. LIVESTRONG.org/espanol also provides a path for survivors to connect with LIVESTRONG SurvivorCare, a free service that offers professional assistance with the challenges of cancer. LIVESTRONG SurvivorCare offers one-on-one counseling services and help with financial, employment or insurance concerns, as well as information about treatment options and connecting to new treatments in development.