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 En Acción unveils new PSAs and ‘SaludToday’ blog to improve Latino health
Scene from PSA, “The Promise”
Redes En Acción today unveiled six new public service announcements and is also promoting a new Latino health blog and Web site, SaludToday, all geared to promoting healthier lifestyles among Latinos.
The six PSAs, which can be viewed on our PSA Web page and also via the SaludToday Web site, aim to educate Latinos about the importance of early screening in detecting breast, cervical and colorectal cancers. In the coming weeks, the new PSAs also will be distributed to TV stations across the country.
The SaludToday Web site, www.SaludToday.com, is an online Latino health forum that uses a blog that simultaneously feeds Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages and features videos, role model stories and the capability for people to share their own health success stories. This site is administered by the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio under the direction of Dr. Amelie Ramirez, which also administers the Redes En Acción program.
The Redes outreach effort aims to catalyze Latino families, community leaders and health researchers to reduce and prevent health disparities – differences in Latinos’ disproportionate burden of disease compared to non-Hispanic whites.
“Latinos are at a disadvantage when it comes to being in good health, so we wanted to raise awareness about disparities and prompt behavioral changes to improve Latino health nationwide,” said Redes Principal Investigator Amelie G. Ramirez, Dr.P.H.
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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 . . .
- APOS 7th 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 2010 APOS 7th Annual Conference — a must-attend event for all professionals working in the field. The conference is scheduled for February 18-21, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana, and is dedicated to Integrating Psychosocial Research and Practice in Quality Cancer Care: Confronting Challenges Together. Please go to http://apos-society.org/apos2010/index.asp 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.