Love Heals

New Book is First to Examine Cancer Disparities and Offer Interventions

New Book is First to Examine Cancer Disparities and Offer Interventions

Hi everyone,

I found what sounds like an amazing new book that provides information on cancer disparities and offers evidence-based interventions. It's co-published by the American Cancer Society and the Springer Publishing Company.

Here's a quote from the article:
"'Cancer Disparities: Causes and Evidenced-Based Solutions' provides real-life examples of how barriers to cancer prevention, care, and information can be reduced or eliminated, " said Otis W. Brawley, M.D., Chief Medical Officer for the American Cancer Society.

I know this will be very useful for future cancer service learning classes.

A surgeon brings cancer care to Harlem (Dr. Harold Freeman)

http://www.cancernetwork.com/breast-cancer/content/article/10165/1155980

This is a great article about Dr. Harold Freeman, a Harlem "guru" of cancer servcies and advocacy for the underserved.  He is a former president of the American Cancer Society, Director of Surgery at Harlem HospitalHospital, and started the Patient Navigator Institute.

This is a quote from him in the article: “We found that poor Americans, regardless of race, have a 5-year cancer survival rate 10% to 15% lower than other Americans. It was important because it made us look at the universal meaning of being poor, irrespective of race,” Dr. Freeman said. It also showed the fragile nature of being poor: without access to healthcare, the poor disappear into themselves."

Nice work!

I saw donation boxes all over campus today and the fundraising group enthusiastically hawking delicious baked goods in the NAC. Good work everybody!

great healthy recipes

This website has some really nice recipes which are healthy too.

"John of God" You Should read about this man some said he can heal cancer and other diseases

Let me know what you think??????

João Teixeira de Faria, internationally known as John of God or João de Deus, is arguably the most powerful unconscious medium alive today and possibly the best-known healer of the past 2000 years. However, João is a humble man who is very clear about one thing: “I do not cure anybody. God heals, and in his infinite goodness permits the Entities to heal and console my brothers. I am merely an instrument in God’s divine hands.” – John of God. The medium Joao Teixeira has no formal medical training. Instead he gives over his consciousness and incorporates the spirits of past doctors and saints. These entities give talks, examine the waiting masses and conduct the visible and invisible operations.

It is estimated that he has treated, either directly or indirectly, up to 15 million people during the past 40 years.

We hope you enjoy our DVD about the healing process in the Casa de Dom Inacio de Loyola and that you use it to prepare for your travel and access the healing energy of the clinic.

http://wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/boweryculinary/store-calendar/

I saw this website and I thought of the Project: Food Drive group. I am not sure if you already reached out to Whole Foods but I think it would be great because they offer classes as well. In case, Eileen may need some contacts?

Health Leads Anyone?

Hii guys,

Theres going to be an info session next tuesday so i thought id spread the word to some of you pre-med people. Here's the flyer for the event. its not showing the picture though =(

RECRUITMENT INFO FOR SPRING 2012

Health Leads New York runs desks at Columbia Presbyterian and Harlem Hospital, helping hundreds of families each year obtain access to vital resources for childcare, GED/ESL, legal aid, food, insurance, job training and beyond.

 Interested in public policy/social justice? Working with patients and doctors to address the impact of poverty on health? Belonging to a community of City College students and staff with a shared vision for a better healthcare system? 

Learn more at our INFO SESSIONS:

Tuesday 12/6, 12-30-2 pm: Marshak Room 418

Interesting Cancer Treatment

While Selling raffle tickets with medinah and malika, we came across a student buyer who told us about this cold cap method that cancer patients use. theyre called Digni cold caps and they help patients retain their hair while they are going through treatment. check out this website!

John of God

http://www.skepdic.com/johnofgod.html

Increase in Colon Cancer Screening Rates

I read an article that claimed that the Patient Navigator campaign started by NYC in 2003 has significantly boosted colon cancer screening rates. A study conducted by researchers at Columbia University supposedly made this discovery but I probably won't be able to find the exact study on my own online. Here's the article with some astounding figures.

Video NY Presbyterian on cancer and food

Cancer Institute(WIA) Foundation, Inc.,

This is a cancer institute and Research center whose mission is to provide free best care for cancer Patients in Societies under poverty.

Hey i was wondering if it would be possible for me to get more brochures for when I ask people about donations...If so then who can I talk to about that??

Naturopathic Medicine

Hi Class,

This post is in response to an earlier post about "Neropathic Medicine help patients." Think you meant Naturopathic Medicine. Naturo pathic medicine is characterized by belief that the body has the ability to heal itself. They promote treating the actual cause of the disease instead of the symptom. For example, around this time of the year many people catch the flu. Medical doctors will observe the symptoms which may include running nose, coughing, sore throat and etc. And from here the doctor will prescribe a medication that will suppress (stop) the symptoms. On the other hand, a Naturopathic doctor will treat what is causing the disease. Maybe the individuals diet is poor in nutrients and their immune system has worn down, allowing them to be more susceptible toward becoming victimized by a virus. Naturapath's encourage a balance lifestyle of a natural food regimen, exercise and maybe even meditation.

In addition to having a naturopathic view of healing I also believe that healing and the state of health should be approach from a cultural perspective. I think that culture should use natural healing methods that come from their culture.

Prostate Cancer interview

http://www.gethealthyharlem.org/articles/harlem-word-dr-carlton-mcgregor-talks-about-getting-screened-prostate-cancer

Hey all,

This is just an interview I found reinforcing Moya's post below. It explains a bit the relationship between  prostate cancer, PSA tests, and the Harlem male demographic. Interviewee is Dr. Carlton McGregor of New York Presbyterian Hospital, an internist and pulmonary specialist who was actually diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Free Prostate Cancer Screening in Harlem

http://harlemworldblog.wordpress.com/2011/06/20/free-prostate-cancer-testing-in-harlem/

This is a link to an article from Harlemworld blog about free prostate screening in Harlem (near Mt. Sinai).  Prostate cancer doesn't always get the same amount of attention as breast and cervical cancer, so it's good to see that there are free screening sites and information for men also.  However, I wonder about linkage to care for diagnosed men, because they are probably even harder to reach and oftentimes, are less likely to follow-up with results and treatment.

Neropathic Medicine can help Patients

This Saturday I have been to an event held by Bridgeport University and about how chinese herbs and food diet could help patients. the theme was to help obese and underweight patients maintain a good-health quality and weight. During the event through a conversation with one of the Neuropathic medicine doctors I gathered some useful information such that...
If you tell someone what to eat and what not to eat does not work.. they need some proves... also if you provide them with list of items that is benefit them they may not follow the list..even if they follow the list for two days they will turn back to what they used to eat... Because everyone choice of food is different, the list of items will be different per patients. Each patient will be treated differently in that respect by finding what is favorite food of each patient is and then they give them recipes of the things that is beneficial to them and has the flavor of what they like.
For our Projects all we can do, we can make some suggestions and encouragements through our pamphlets.

Hey guys,
For the people who are in the group that are going to give out food baskets, I know a woman who works in a health center in Harlem. She told me that there are a lot of breast cancer patients there. If you would like I can talk to her about maybe giving some of the baskets to the patients there. Let me know :)

Crowdsourcing

Just wanted to get the word out about a website that might come in handy for future service-learning groups that are interested in fundraising for a particular cause.

It's called Crowdrise and has been featured in many online articles such as this one: 11 Innovative Crowdfunding Platforms for Social Good.

National Cancer Institute

Hello Everyone
The national cancer institute is a very good source of information for both providers and patients. therefore it can benefit us in terms of learning what are the steps for those who are diagnosed cancer and how can we provide to them. The link to For Public Health Program Planners will take you to more sources of useful information.

quick healthy recipes can include in the baskets or if your giving advice to a patient

Women At Risk Symposium

Below is an invitation to attend a great event that Eileen Fuentes will be speaking at next week:

Women At Risk
NY Presbyterian Hospital
Columbia University Medical Center

Invites You to Attend

The Laurie Bass Sklaver Annual Symposium

-

Empower Yourself: Lifestyle and Wellness Choices for Women at High Risk for or with Breast Cancer

GET HEALTHY: LIFESTYLE MODIFICATIONS AND DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS FOR

CANCER PREVENTION

Heather Greenlee, ND, PhD

Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Medical Oncology,
Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health & College of Physicians and Surgeons

Naturopathic Physician and Epidemiologist

SOUL (SEASONAL, ORGANIC, UNPROCESSED, & LOCAL) FOOD TO SUPPORT YOUR HEALTH

Eileen Z. Fuentes
Board Certified Wellness, Lifestyle & Integrative Cancer Coach
Breast Cancer Survivor
 

MAKING CHOICES: INTEGRATING COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES AND STANDARD TREATMENTS

Hope Nemiroff

Executive Director, Breast Cancer Options

Breast Cancer Survivor

PATIENT PANEL

A panel of survivors and women at high risk for breast cancer will discuss their experiences.

Moderated by Katherine Crew, MD

Co-Medical Director, Women At Risk

Florence Irving Assistant Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons

Opening Remarks by Sheldon Feldman, MD

Chief of Breast Surgery, Columbia University Medical Center/NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 14th, 2011

Refreshments 5:30-6:00PM * Program 6:00-8:00PM

UJA-Federation of New York * 7^th Floor Conference Center * 130 E. 59^th St. between Park and Lexington Aves.

Reservations Required: Please call (212) 305-5917 or email info@womenatrisknyc.org

Free admission * Seating is limited

This event is generously supported by the

Friends and Family of Laurie Bass Sklaver

Anyone still confused about health insurance?

This is one of the best resources I've found for understanding health insurance in the U.S. - enjoy!

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/391/more-is-less

nourishing nyc

Hey guys,
I think what Gina from nourishing nyc is great and i was just wondering if anyone was thinking about volunteering either for thanksgiving or any other events. I think it would be cool if the class did something with that organization. Any thoughts??

Nourishing NYC

Don't forget to "like" NourishingNYC on Facebook if you have it! Lets Support!
http://www.nourishingnyc.org/

Harlem Health Promotion Center

This is a great place to network with groups in the community and stay informed on current event as it relates the health of Harlem's community.

Why do people order big portions?

Hey there nutrition folks,

I read this blog post this morning -connections between feelings of powerlessness and ordering larger portions. What are implications in Harlem??
Thoughts?

Breast cancer may be more difficult to detect in minorities

An astonishing new research study suggests that breast cancer may be more difficult to detect in minority women. The reason being that minority women tend to have denser breasts and as most of you who went to the breast cancer event should know, dense breasts are harder to see through with a mammogram. This adds to the plethora of reasons for why minorities, mostly blacks, face cancer disparities when it comes to screening, access, and treatment.

This article gives a little breakdown of how breast cancer affects each minority group differently.

Breast Cancer in African American Women

Continued research on the breast cancer disparity.

http://www.bradenton.com/2011/10/18/3574595/deadly-mystery-breast-cancer-study.html

http://www.choosemyplate.gov/
This choosemyplate.com is a very good website that gives nutrition and calories count, healthy eating tips. For people in different conditions have different tips to follow. For example there is a different list of nutritious food for pregnant women.

Profile of Hope: Tracey Tann Parker -- Feeling good after a healthy lifestyle change

I read this story about Tracey Parker and found it interesting that how her unhealthy life changed after change in her life style. She realized that she was not eating fruits and vegetables after she was assigned a home work by a professor.

Ralph Lauren on WHCR

Hey all,

WHCR recently hosted the director of the Ralph Lauren Cancer Center on one of their shows. You can listen to it here:
Interview

He talks about Patient Navigation and Cancer treatment in Harlem, and discusses the RLCC's partnership with MSKCC. Enjoy!

Study finds association between cancer and bacteria

An article in the Harvard Crimson today tells of a possible association between cancer and bacteria. Bacteria called Fusobacteria have been found in large quantities in tumors of many colorectal cancer patients. The exact relationship between these kinds of bacteria and tumors has not been determined yet but more research will be done in order to figure this out. Infected tissue samples were examined through a process called Pathogen Sequencing. Advancements in DNA sequencing technology have made this discovery possible.

This bacteria hasn't been discovered to cause cancer but new discoveries could aid in the development of future treatments. It's kind of like the way HPV has been attributed to cervical cancer.

Link: Study May Link Bacteria to Cancer

8 Communities with Breast Cancer Disparities

Here's a story on NPR about a study by Dr. Harold P. Freeman (the man who pioneered Patient Navigators) on cancer disparities in eight U.S. communities, both rural and urban. He says poverty and lack of education are the common denominators in all these communities, across ethnic and geographic differences.

The shortage of CHEMO-THERAPY drugs...

WOW. The shortage of CHEMO-drugs! Prices Increases...Disparities of course will soon increase.

The video below from MSNBC:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/44938030#44938030

Cancer patients show symptoms of PTSD

Hello everyone,

I was reading up on some cancer news and found a Reuters article talking about how many cancer survivors struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder. A statistic says that nearly 4 out of 10 survivors display symptoms. "Those symptoms include being extra jumpy, having disturbing thoughts about the cancer and its treatment, or feeling emotionally numb toward friends and family." It also said that 1 in 10 try not thinking about the disease and at least 1 in 20 avoid any kind of activity or situation that reminded them of cancer.


This could be dangerous for the survivor because they're not supposed to avoid medical care and miss follow ups because there is always chance of recurrence. The survey was conducted at the Duke Cancer Institute in Durham, North Carolina and based on 566 patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. I find this survey a little surprising especially since the article says that low-income people are extra vulnerable to the psychological effects of living with this disease, but it makes sense.


Here's the link: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/12/us-cancer-ptsd-idUSTRE79B7FT20111012

U.S. Panel Says No to Prostate Screening for Healthy Men

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/07/health/07prostate.html

WOW! Found this article...I think it is something to consider

For a Doctor, Survival and Transformation

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/11/health/11brody.html?ref=health

This was a really inspiring story about a young Doctor being diagnosed with Breast Cancer. She sees and can understand the other side of her table: from a doctors point of view to a patients point of view. One of the things she values was having a people around her willing to help her as well as a mentor who helped her get through the struggle. Being that she was married, the part that stood out the most for me was the fact that during Therapy her and her husband took a vacation to Hawaii together. =)

Hi every On Tuesday October me and Rebecca met with one of the speakers from the Breast cancer in women of Color conference, Karen Schmitt. Karen is the Director of the Northern Manhattan cancer screening partnership at Columbia University. She spoke about the services they provide... there are two types of services in seven different offices. In-reach services is that patients come to office and they get free screening and if they were diognose they help them to apply for Medicaid Cancer Treatment Program for immediate services but there are some patients who do not qualify for that too. New York prespeterian has funds for those patients not qualified for medicaid. they also provide Out-reach services by looking out for patients who are in need andmake sure all patients get the type of treatments they can' get. About nutrition effects on cancer she added that the message for cancer is healthy lifestyle. Therefore exercise has a role, and having healthy food has an effects but the real cause of cancer is unknown.
Among the women of color the cancer is not as common as in white women but African American women has high mortality rate... maybe because when they go under chemotherapy their white blood cells level dramatically drops so they need to wait for the blood cells get back to normal in order to proceed with chemotherapy again.
the other issues Women of color has, are emotional issues, Socioeconomic issues, low level of health literacy. So we need to make sure everything we write in a pamphlet should be really basic level.

Medicaid for Immigrants who are Not Permanent Residents

Hey Class,

This article pertains to Medicaid for Immigrants who are Not Permanent Residents. My group was given a case with a person who fits this profile. I'm currently brainstorming projects that can meet the educational barriers of immigrant cancer patients by promoting awareness of programs that meet their specific needs such as Emergency Medicaid.

Click on the title to access the website.

Event this week Epidemiology and Biostatistics Seminar Serie

Epidemiology and Biostatistics Seminar Series Presents: Paolo Boffetta, Mt. Sinai School of Medicine - "Cancer Epidemiology Research: Challenges and Opportunities"

Date:

October 12, 2011

Time:

4:00 PM – 6:00 PM

College:

CUNY School of Public Health

Address:

2180 Third Ave., New York, NY 10035 (Corner of 119th & 3rd Ave.)
Manhattan

Building:

Silberman

Room:

115B, First Floor

Phone:

(212) 396-7778

Website:

http://www.cuny.edu/sph

Admission:

Free

Questions for Karen

Hey all,

Malika, Jean and I will be meeting with Karen Schmitt from the Northern Manhattan Cancer Screening Partnership next Tuesday. She was one of the speakers at the NYU Breast Cancer conference, and we think she could have some insights into the needs of patients undergoing treatment.
Does anyone have any questions they would like to ask her? We'll post back to the blog after our meeting and share what we find.

Healthy Foods, Strong Communities

This article breaks down the historical aspect of the unavailability of healthy foods in low-income minority communities and solutions that have been implemented. I found it interesting.

Great Summary of Harlem cancer screening, hospitalization, incidence, and mortality

If you click the cancer.pdf link under "Harlem Health Statistics" (on the page link below), there is a great break down of the top 4 types of cancer and their comparision in Central Harlem, East Harlem, NYC, and the US.
http://healthyharlem.org/about_harlem_3.php

Healthier versions of soul food

This page is a link off of ralph lauren cancer center in Harlems website. It just shows how you can change the recipe of some food so that it is healthier and the same taste. It also has a link to 40 ways to improve your health and 45 superfoods , which is a list of fruits and vegetables and why they are beneficial to the body.

Grocery Shopping Tours

Hey everyone, I found this cool link about grocery shopping tours and thought it could be related to food and cancer patients. This article doesn't talk about cancer specifically but there are so many people living with cancer who could learn a thing or two from this. There are many places that give tours that apply to general healthy eating and I know of an organization that gives tours to diabetes patients, but there are none that I could find that could be applied to what cancer patients should be eating.

I think this would be a good idea for a project if anyone is interested, I know I am.

http://www.wellandgoodnyc.com/2011/01/26/grocery-shopping-tours/

Breast Cancer Walk

Hey Everyone! Today at the Community Service Fair, Moya and I saw a table for the Breast Cancer Walk! Thought it might interest some who may want to walk on October 16th, 2011! =)

http://makingstrides.acsevents.org/site/PageServer?pagename=MSABC_FY12_findanevent

A Breast Cancer survivor story

Center to reduce Cancer Health Disparities

I found the following link to be a great resources for current programs that are being implemented to reduce Cancer Health Disparities. We can see what methods are working for them and perhaps incorporate that into our own projects. It also has a plethora of research information as it relates to socioeconomic and socio-demographic variables.

The link is: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/disparities

It also mentions undergraduate/graduate research programs available (if you wish to do more extensive research on cancer health disparities). Here's some info on the program I found:

• CURE

Quick Links

• Meet the Staff
• NCI Home Page
• NCI Cancer Health Disparities Portal

Continuing Umbrella of Research Experiences (CURE)

CRCHD’s Continuing Umbrella of Research Experiences (CURE) program offers unique training and career development opportunities to enhance diversity in cancer and cancer health disparities research. With a focus on broadening the cadre of underrepresented investigators engaging in cancer research, the CURE program identifies promising candidates from high school through junior investigator levels and provides them with a continuum of competitive funding opportunities.

The CURE program offers funding opportunities to support the training and career development for students, researchers, and junior investigators using research supplements, predoctoral fellowships, and career development awards.

The research supplements are designed for principal investigators holding specific types of NIH grants who need funds for administrative supplements to foster diversity in the research workforce. These supplements support and recruit students, postdoctoral, and eligible investigators from groups shown to be underrepresented in biomedical research.

The CURE supplements include NCI Cancer Center (P30) supplements for high school and undergraduate student research experiences, supplements to the NCI Cancer Education and Career Development Program (R25T), supplements to the Institutional Clinical Oncology Research Development Awards (K12), and supplements to the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Institutional Research Training Grants (T32).

Fellowships include the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (F31) that provides up to five years of support for research training leading to the Ph.D. or equivalent research degree, the combined M.D./Ph.D. degree, or other combined professional doctorate/research Ph.D. degrees in biomedical, behavioral sciences, health services, or clinical sciences.

EGFR Essential for the Development of Pancreatic Cancer | ALN

EGFR Essential for the Development of Pancreatic Cancer | ALN

IUD's may protect against cervical cancer

Came past this article this morning about how IUD's may protect against Cervical Cancer?
Hmmmm...

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/health/research/20patterns.html?_r=1&ref=health

Medicare & Medicaid Cancer Patients Can't Get Easy Treatment for Anemia

This is an interesting article related to disparities in access to healthcare for cancer patients with public insurance.  Anemia is a common related illness and many cancer patients will not be able to access the same level of treatment for anemia unless they pay out-of-pocket.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/393089/medicare_medicaid_cancer_patients_cant.html?cat=5

Free Health Fair near CCNY campus

There is going to be a free health fair this Saturday (9/24/11) from 11AM - 4PM on W135th street between Lenox and 7 Ave. 

I encourage you guys to go and visit. You'll get many props for your own projects that should be in planning at this point. You should split event going with your fellow students; e.g. some of you should attend the NYU conference on 24th and some of you should attend this health fair. 

Cancer Health Disparities: Challenges and Opportunities

i thought this video was interesting as we have also recognized most of the culprits of health disparities in Cancer. This video just reiterates the importance of work thats being done to reduce the disparities.

I though it was very interesting

Diagnosed With Cancer?

If You or a Loved One Has Cancer, Here Are 11 Effective, Natural Strategies to Defeat This Deadly Disease

A diagnosis of cancer, or even a suspicion of cancer is darn fearful. You reflect on friends or family who died of cancer. Of all the celebrities who got cancer, gradually deteriorated and died. (Other than Suzanne Somers who went alternative, thrived, survived, and wrote a book about it.) Even every TV show or movie featuring someone with cancer has them dying at the end.

So it’s no wonder research shows that cancer is the most feared disease in the world along with being the most feared word too. How could it not be - given these circumstances?

It may not be so fearful to you if you've been told to come here to read this information by someone who beat a stage 4 cancer by using the cancer fighting strategies covered on this website. Otherwise, it’s no wonder that you’re afraid and skeptical. How could you not be?

In fact, the knowledge in this report is at such odds with what your doctor tells you about cancer, most people reading this page will not go on to read this entire report. It sounds too good to be true.

So one of the biggest issues that you have to wrap your mind around is the obvious thought, “If the information in this report, and the supplements recommended, are so good, why isn’t everyone using them.”

It’s a good question. The answer at its most fundamental level is money and secondarily, that it takes a great deal of time for new ways to fight disease to be accepted. Dr. Samuel S. Epstein writes about this in several books which you may want to read. He is an internationally recognized authority on the causes of cancer, particularly carcinogen exposure from food, air, water, household products, cosmetics, prescription drugs or industrial carcinogens in the workplace.

It may take quite a bit to get to the point where you realize that just doing what your doctors put you through is not adequate. Unfortunately, for many people this point comes at the end, when it is clear that medicine has failed and they are dying a painful and slow death.

It doesn’t have to be this way. One reason we make this report as long as we do is that the more you understand, the more ways you learn to beat cancer, the more testimonials you read, the more this will sink into you.

So the first thing I want to communicate to you is that there is hope. In fact, there is a whole lot of hope. The overwhelming feedback from our research is that when the right actions are taken, even aggressive, tough cancers can be defeated.

This information has been compiled over the course of ten years. It is continually being updated as we find better supplements or learn about new effective cancer fighting procedures.

This report will tell you about the most effective cancer fighting supplements we have found in our research. Supplements that work on their own, or in conjunction with chemotherapy or radiation therapy, to defeat cancer.

And because we believe everyone should have access to this information, we’re offering it at no charge.

We’ve compiled the overwhelming amount of information on the causes of cancer and natural cancer treatments, and condensed it into this report. Well, actually, it's the size of a book.

Better still, we've tested most of the cancer fighting supplements and rated them for you on their cancer fighting ability. This will prevent the mistake of using supplements that sound good but aren't good enough in all too many cases, to beat a tough cancer. So you won't waste money or, your life, on supplements that are marginally effective.

"Another unhealthy year for Harlem: Upper Manhattan neighborhood has highest death rate in NYC"

From this article, we can clearly see that Harlem's health is in a state of emergency.

2011 Komen Greater NYC Race For the Cure

TUNE IN TO CBS2 ON FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2011 AT 7:00 P.M. EST FOR A ONE-HOUR KOMEN GREATER NYC SPECIAL!

Lace up your sneakers and register now because Sunday, September 18 is Race Day!

Thanks to your dedication, we raised $5.4 million last year and awarded $4.8 million in grants this year! To encourage you to raise even more, we are adding a major new feature to this year’s event: a fantastic new Pledge Prize Program with more levels, 10 or more prizes to choose from at each level, and greater opportunity to earn prizes.

Take our $250 Challenge - just raise $250 and you’ll be eligible to choose a reward that’s perfect for you. We have simple Fundraising Tips to help you as well as many letters you can email that will be available to you in your own Race Participant Center after you register. Remember, registering gets us to the start line, fundraising gets us to the cures!

We are bringing back the Survivor Race T-Shirt Fashion Show and the Survivor Parade, both inaugurated last year and big successes. Be sure to join us in the Bandshell after the Race for both.

We look forward to the return of all of our teams, individuals, Co-Survivors, and especially our Survivors, as well as seeing a lot of new faces. Just click on the appropriate button on the right and get started --register or donate, it's never too soon to run breast cancer out of town!

Link: http://www.komennyc.org/site/TR?fr_id=1230&pg=entry

Sleep In for the Cure^®

 

Not a morning person? Are you going to be out of town on Race Day? Can’t get a sitter for the kids? Do you have to work?

For those who prefer to snooze rather than lace up their running shoes, sign up for Sleep In for the Cure and help run breast cancer out of town from home or wherever you’ll be on September 18! Support Komen Greater NYC from the comfort of your own bed and still have an impact on the fight against breast cancer.

Participants who register for this program will receive a Race t-shirt and a special bib and, best of all, everything will be mailed to you. Register as a Sleep In for the Cure participant, by choosing the "Sleep in for the Cure" option as your participation type.

Remember, you can join any regular Race team as a Sleep In for the Cure member - just choose the "Sleep in for the Cure as a Team Member" participation type. You will even be eligible for our fantastic new pledge prize program, featuring many gifts to choose from at each level, for your team or individual fundraising efforts.

Link: http://www.komennyc.org/site/PageServer?pagename=TR2011_race_sleepin

NYer Of The Week: Leader Works To "Tell Every Amazing Lady" About Ovarian Cancer

Last week when I was watching the NY1 News they were presenting the New Yorker of the Week named Pamela Esposito Amery. She created the TEAL non-profit organization to create awareness regarding Ovarian Cancer since there is a lack of consciousness in this specific cancer. They were promoting the 3^rd Annual TEAL Walk held by the Ovarian Research Foundation last September 10^th, 2011 at Prospect Park, Brooklyn. In the first two years, Amery, her sister, and almost 2,000 participants raised more than $100,000 for the Ovarian Research Foundation. I encourage the Service Learning Class to participate in similar wonderful events. For more information visit: tealwalk.org.

An Immune System Trained to Kill Cancer

Read this article in the Nytimes dated  for Sept 12. Its about a ground breaking experiment involving the transmission of enhanced T-cells into the body specifically designed seek out and kill cancer cells. For the patients tested their cancer cells dropped to low levels or was eradicated completely. I thought that was pretty interesting and amazing if the doctors can perfect this.

FreshDirect/American Cancer Society Partnership

Last week, we talked about the benefits of food delivery for people undergoing cancer treatment.  Below is info about FreshDirect's partnership with the American Cancer Society.

The American Cancer Society: Together We Are Helping Others in Need

For the past two years, FreshDirect has been proud to partner with the American Cancer Society®, a nationwide, community-based voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem.
Founded here in New York City in 1913, the American Cancer Society now has more than two million volunteers nationwide, making it one of the oldest and largest voluntary health agencies in the United States. ACS works to prevent cancer, save lives and diminish suffering from cancer through research, education, advocacy and service.
When FreshDirect — and customers like you — contribute to the American Cancer Society, we're helping the ACS to serve cancer patients, survivors, their families and others who need up-to-date, reliable cancer information and support.
FreshDirect projects with the American Cancer Society include:

• Our nutritionist's Smart Eats — a selection of food that fits the American Cancer Society's recommendations for healthy eating.
• Fast, fun, flavorful meals from the American Cancer Society cookbooks in our One-Click Recipes area
• Annual fundraising for October's National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
• Cooking workshops and fundraising for Hope Lodge NYC. Minutes away from some of the nation's most reputable cancer centers, Hope Lodge offers an affordable and supportive place to stay during treatment for cancer patients and their families.
• Support and fundraising for Camp Adventure. On the shores of Eastern Long Island, Camp Adventure provides an opportunity for kids to just be kids while receiving the medical attention they need from pediatric oncology professionals.

What can be DONE??? think think : Navigator Internship Program

What can be DONE??? think think : Navigator Internship Program

HPV vaccine becomes part of political controversy

I was listening to the news this week and heard about a bit of health controversy over a statement by Republican presidential candidate, Michele Bachmann, on NBC's "Today" show. In her statement, she said that she met a mother after the presidential debate in Florida who claimed that her young daughter had been suffering from mental retardation after taking the HPV vaccine. HPV vaccines, specifically Cervarix and Gardasil, protect women from the certain types of human papillomavirus that can cause cervical cancer. Texas Governor and also presidential candidate, Rick Perry, issued an executive order requiring sixth-grade girls to be given the HPV vaccine in 2007 and Bachmann's statement was meant to criticize his decision as an overexertion of power.

Nevertheless, I believe that political figures should check their facts when making such claims, especially when it's about the health of people across the US. The Institute of Medicine has found absolutely no evidence that links HPV vaccines to mental retardation and deemed it "generally safe". Cervical cancer affects about 12,000 women every year in the US and kills about 4,000 of those women. Most people generally have faith in what government representatives do or say, but it only goes to show how important it is for people to be educated in health, especially when it comes to cancer.

Part of Bachmann's response to questioning by another conservative talk show host about her statement was, “I am not a doctor, I am not a scientist, I’m not a physician”.

Here's a link to a NYTimes article about the matter:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/14/us/politics/republican-candidates-battle-over-hpv-vaccine.html

Navigator Internship Program

Hey Guys!
Someone told me about this program last year. They completed it and told me it was a great program to join if you have the time to dedicate to it. Maybe next year!
(Assistant Patient Navigator Internship Program)

http://cunyba.gc.cuny.edu/files/APN-application_Fall-2011_final.pdf

healthy food

Hey guys,
I found an CBS News article about healthy foods that can be eaten to help patients that have cancer. I think one thing we have to remember is that when a patient is sick and is having cancer treatment, their appetites aren't the same and a lot of foods don't taste the same. I think we should consider ways to work with the patients in eating healthier because you can't just force them to change their diets.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/11/01/health/webmd/main999453.shtml

Freshbag

Hey this is an idea similar to the one we spoke about in class. This student dealt with the same issue we have, getting fresh food to urban communities. So he established thefreshbag.com. Customers can order fresh fruit for a cheaper price online and pick it up from their pick up locations. Deliveries are only made on certain days and you can only pick them up at certain locations.
store website: http://thefreshbag.com/

project ideas

Hey yall, since we're all in the birthing process of raising a project idea I have a few seeds to plant. These are all in abstract since we still have a lot of information to digest. I see two targets within the community we have the opportunity to impact. The two objectives being the SICK/OLD and the YOUNG.

SICK/OLD- design and implement an outreach program that involves making healthy food/produce easier to obtain for the sick or mal-conditioned by cancer. (this approach utilizes our partnership with the catering company)

YOUNG-organize and stage an informal awareness/educational seminar that allows us the opportunity to expose/push our worthy "agenda"(yet to be developed, but that I feel should contain a message of personal and collective responsibility to adopt healthier food consumption habits for not only themselves but also to expose their elders and friends to) To me this approach hinges on our ability to obtain a public figure for our "seminar" that the young Harlem community would be receptive to. I think a New York Knick basketball player serves as a perfect living example to showcase the possible results one could meet by adopting a healthy lifestyle. Most athletes know this importance/role nutrition plays in there daily life and duties. Maybe we could find such an athlete that also has been impacted in their life someway by cancer, furthering their interest in our project. (this approach utilizes all our gathered info, stats, solutions we find through our research)

What can be DONE??? think think : Study shows reduction in death for men with intermediate-grade prostate cancer

http://journeytowellness.com/prostate-cancer-article/therapy-reducing-prostate-cancer-deaths.html

Study shows reduction in death for men with intermediate-grade prostate cancer

Hey Class,

I thought this article directly tied into our focus. It discusses the the recent research of a short-term hormone therapy given in combination with radiation therapy to men with early-stage prostate cancer patients. The result was that it increased their chances of living longer compared to treatment with radiation therapy alone, according to a clinical trial supported by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health.

I recall us mentioning an integrated approach to cancer treatment, which may include but isn't limited to adopting healthier eating habits. This experiment doesn't state what the eating habits of the patients were, however, it was still an integrated approach of both short-term hormone therapy and radiation.

The article states " Patients were randomly assigned to treatment with radiation alone or radiation plus short-term androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) using drugs that drastically lowered their natural production of testosterone, a hormone which feeds prostate cancer growth." From this observation we can infer that the presence of testosterone hormone is correlated to the chance of living. The greater amount of testosterone present the lower the chances of living is. This is an observation and not an experiment, therefore, we cannot say high levels testosterone causes cancer. They are just negatively correlated, where the increase of testosterone produces a decrease in life expectancy.

To find more information about the testosterone and cancer correlation like dug a little deeper and found this: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110419121353.htm. The article states, "This study, involving 13 symptomatic testosterone deficient men who also had untreated prostate cancer, suggests this traditional view is incorrect, and that testosterone treatment in men does not cause rapid growth of prostate cancer." The conducted experiment supports that testosterone doesn't cause the prostate cancer. So, if testosterone doesn't directly affect the life expectancy of prostate cancer patients why did the hormone therapy show an improvement of life expectancy? Perhaps it was also a combination of healthier eating habits (that wasn't mentioned in the article.)

The Benefits of Patient Navigation Programs

"Patient Navigation is a process by which an individual—a patient navigator—guides patients with a suspicious finding (eg, test shows they may have cancer) through and around barriers in the complex cancer care system to help ensure timely diagnosis and treatment."

This is a link to a great program at the Harlem Hospital Center that showed longer survival rates among participants.

Patient Navigation - Quality Cancer Care

Easing Side Effects Of Cancer Treatment With Diet

Article about how patients can improve what they are eating while under treatment.

The Benefits of Exercise in Cancer Patients Undergoing Treatment

I'm sure a lot of you have heard of the Taiwanese research study, surfacing last month, that showed that at least fifteen minutes of moderate exercise could add up to three years to your life, but did you know the actual extent of the benefits of exercise in cancer patients? 


I came across this very interesting blog article on the New York Times website telling of a British report encouraging more able-bodied cancer patients to increase their level of activity. Contrary to popular belief, cancer survivors should not live a more sedentary lifestyle as light exercise could and should be incorporated into their regimen. It was found that "two and a half hours of exercise a week could lower a breast cancer patient’s risk of dying or cancer recurrence by 40 percent, and could reduce a prostate cancer patient’s risk of dying from the disease by about 30 percent." 


A panel at the American College of Sports Medicine, which developed a set of guidelines for this type of physical activity, though, has stated that there is nothing wrong with the most ill cancer patients waiting a few days to attempt any sort of exercise and that it should be consulted with a physician in order to weigh the risks and benefits.


As an advocate for exercise, I think that the benefits of at least a little bit of  exercise in everyone's lives are clear.


For more info on exercise for cancer patients, see here: 
http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Cancerinformation/Livingwithandaftercancer/Physicalactivity/Physicalactivityandcancer/Physicalactivityinformation.aspx

Sustainable South Bronx

This amazing TED Talk reflects upon the intersectionality of environmental justice, nutrition, urban blight, and race/class struggle. Majora's community organizing efforts highlights a gross-roots solution that allows for the citizens of the South Bronx to occupy spaces of empowerment in their own neighborhoods. Green the Ghetto is a great example of how issues of health, space, and community involvement are requisite in processing public health issues.

Harlem Dept of Health report

I found this on the department of healths website. It reports the statistics about the communitys race, disease, population. For more parts of manhattan you can search it by just typing in the zip code under my communitys health of the dept of health nyc website.
heres the link to the report:

Washington Heights Dept of Health report

I found this on the department of healths website.They are statisitcs about the majority race and prevalent diseases in the community. About page 11 shows cancer statisitcs

10 Energy Drinks Not Worth The Sugar Rush

hey,

I came across this website that gives the shows how much sugar an be in those energy drinks. Such as 1 rockstar energy drink equals 4.5 oatmeal raisin cookies. Or even more amazing one AMP drink equals 6 glazed donuts.

More Info

http://www.choosemyplate.gov/

http://www.myfoodapedia.gov/

This is a "newer" version of the food plate, as well as, a link to food-a-pedia where we can search any kind of food and find out information on its food group and calories.

Cool Sketch

Hey!

This drawing made me think about Ms. Jyoti's sketches, haha. It's very informative though!




http://malenrutherford.com/wp-content/uploads/1295802012-11.jpg

What Nutrition Lingo Really Means

Hello goodnight,

I found this really great article that talks about the meaning of antioxidants, free radicals energy density and other terms that are found on the foods that we consume. What I really enjoyed about this article is that they put the information in such a way that high school students can understand. For example they say that free radicals are like 'bullies' that attack our cells. This is just some light reading.

Alana

http://www.thatsfit.com/2011/05/27/what-nutrition-lingo-really-means/?icid=maing-grid7|main5|dl5|sec1_lnk3|67275

Iron and Iron Deficiency

While I was doing an essay for my biology class, I found this website.

It made me think of the healthy living guide. We are not only trying to reduce the risk of cancer but to show people how to start having a healthy lifestyle.

This article talks is about iron deficiency. It provides ways on how to prevent iron deficiency and I thought of the Nutrition Label and Recipes section of the book

Reflection

Being in this service learning class has really taught me so much about health and nutrition and the importance of taking care of our community (really). I mean the information that I gained here even helped me to make better changes in my diet. Now I eat more vegetables and more fruits and a lot less of the junk food that I used to eat. Surprisingly I also felt another change. Before, I used to eat a lot of processed foods and could not care less what was being put into them. But now I know that a lot of salt goes into preserving these kinds of foods and so I try my best to stay away from them. I could even taste the amount of salt that was being added to the food when I did decide to eat a processed food once a week. I couldn't believe what I was tasting. It really made me think, did I really used to eat this much salt? really? This really made me appreciate the fact that I was learning so much about nutrition from this class. This class gave me so much insight that I know that I will continue to spread the word about our guide even after this semester is over. I really am more knowledgeable about nutrition and cancer and I really do hope that the people of Harlem also become more knowledgeable about their health and how it can relate to cancer because it will help them live healthier lifestyles. I really know that a lot of people are genuinely interested in learning more about nutrition and I hope that we can help them to understand the importance of nutrition and its impact on our health. Thank you.

Anti-Acne diet

Hello Guys,

I found another reason to cut down on carbohydrates and incorporate healthier alternatives in our daily diets. It was found that eating foods high in sugar, including milk sugar (found in a variety of dairy products) can cause the skin to have an inflammatory response causing acne.

The way it works is that, some people may have too much yeast in their body. The yeast feeds on the large amount of sugar, which allows them to multiply. It was found that there is yeast in our sebaceous glads (glands in our skin that releases oils to moisturize our skin). The skin then launches anti-inflammatory responses to this intrusion which then causes deep acne. (http://www.stylelist.com/2011/05/13/acne-treatment/?icid=maing-grid7|main5|dl5|sec3_lnk1|62909 )

The best way to combat this deep acne is to eat foods rich in anti-oxidants, eat foods that have good fats like avocado,nuts and fish.

From this class, I have have obtained many reasons to start eating healthier, from decreasing your chances of cancer to decreasing wrinkles.

Thanks guys for sharing these really great articles!

Coffee can Reduce Breast Cancer Risk

A recent Sweedish study says women who drink five cups of coffee or more a day can reduce their risk of getting ER-negative breast cancer. ER-negative breast cancer is a hormone receptor type of breast cancer [estrogen receptor] meaning the breast cancer cells have a significant number of receptors for estrogen. The negative indicates that there is less response to hormone therapy. Approximately one third of all breast cancers are ER-negative. It is not known for sure if the type of coffee bean used or the method of preparation played a role in the results.

Harlem, Take Care of Yourself health Fair

The health event that will be hosted in City College this Saturday was actually promoted by amNY. Check it out!

Healthy Sources of Vitamin D

With the summer approaching we will all be getting enough vitamin D that we need. However, there is no recommended amount of time suggested for staying in the sun long enough to receive the adequate amount of Vitamin D without increasing your risk of skin cancer. Here's an article on different food sources to help incorporate Vitamin D through diet. Tuna, salmon and of course milk are a few sources listed. Vitamin D is necessary for maintaining strong bones and even supporting the immune system from germs and other diseases like cancer.

Summary of what we are trying to say

I think this is would be a great handout for Saturday's health fair..

Sugary Drinks Increases Risks of Developing Pancreatic Cancer

A recent study has found that drinking 2 or more sugary drinks a week can increase the risks of developing pancreatic cancer. The substantial amount of sugar in these drinks stimulates our pancreas and causes it to produce large amounts of insulin in our body. Yet another reason to stay away from sugary drink and stick to water...

The Anti Cancer Diet

Hi All,

I am not sure if someone else posted this but its from Doctor Oz (and I know we all love Dr. Oz :)).

It is an Anti Cancer quick guide.

Paulina

Medicine: Emotions, Sex & Cancer

Hey,

This article is about how the emotions may affect cancer. This TIME, magazine article states that people who were able to express their anger, aggressiveness, and sexual impulses had a better response to their cancer therapy compared to their counterparts who were a little more morose. It goes on to say that they also saw that people with a more sunny disposition or a bizarre personality had a better time with therapy.


Alana

What is Cancer?

Hey Good afternoon,


This is a little late in the game, but my friend was looking up cancer, and came across a simple 2 minute video about cancer. I think its informative and that we could use this link in our guide. Plus I like the graphics.


Alana

Plant-Rich Diet

Here's an article about a woman who completely transformed her diet and is now a "food for life" instructor for the Cancer Project. She follows a plant-rich diet and encourages others to do so in fighting off cancer.

Paulina Sayegh

Water Intake and Cancer Prevention

We've been focusing on food and physical activity. Here's an interesting article that discusses the inverse relationship between water/fluid intake and cancer!

Enjoy!

Paulina Sayegh

Omega 3 fatty acid and cancer risk

Most of us have heard of the importance of eating fish to obtain omega 3 fatty acids because of its multiple benefits. Researchers have found that men with high levels of DHA [one of the omega 3 fatty acids found in fish oil] are two and half times more likely to have an aggressive form of prostate cancer. In addition, most of the claims that have been made in the past regarding the benefits of consuming omega 3 fatty acids have been under substantial scrutiny in fact fish oil may be doing more harm than good. Studies have shown there is a link between fish oil consumption and developing type 2 diabetes. Moreover, fish oil has NOT shown to improve memory in Alzheimer patients, cognitive development in babies during pregnancy nor help heart patients. Please share this info with your family and friends.

CSA: Community Supported Agriculture

Yesterday during the sale, one of our customers introduced and told me about CSA: community supported agriculture. CSA is a way for people to buy local foods directly from a farmer. People who buy from CSA are offered certain advantages, such as fresh food, knowledge of where the food came from and who they are buying from, and new ways of being exposed to new vegetables. This sounds like a great way of buying fresh food and perhaps, a possible project or direction for future service learning classes.

Phone Applications Help to Detect Cancer

A new phone application can now actually detect different types of cancers that one may be developing. There are different applications for skin cancer, breast cancer, and ovarian cancer. The article that I am sharing, speaks of detecting skin cancer. In class, we spoke about how many people do not go to the doctors for checkups for many reasons, such as the lack of time or insurance. By downloading, these applications, people can easily diagnose cancer or at least take pictures of any suspicions. After taking pictures of any moles or parts of the skin that people may be suspicious of, they can send them over to doctors and experts.

Diet and Cancer

Heres another link....theres a quiz to see how healthy your diet is. Maybe we can also include this link in the guide

Paulina

Cancer and Physical Activity

Hi All,

Maybe we can provide this link in our guide book for more info :)

-Paulina

Face facts: Too much sugar can cause wrinkles

Hello Goodnight,

I found another reason why we should limit our intake of sugar. It leads to WRINKLES!!! According to the article, eating sugary products leads the skin to look dull and life-less all because of the "chemical experiments" that the sugar undergoes with the proteins in our skin.

The article states that the sugar that we ingest binds to proteins found in our bloodstream to form AGE's (advanced glycation end products. The more AGE's that are accumulated, the more damaged proteins you have. The proteins that are affected in the skin are elastin and collagen( I hear about these proteins a lot when it comes to companies selling their anti-aging skin products). It makes the usually "springy and resilient" proteins dry and brittle which leads to wrinkles and sagging skin.

The good news is that the effects start showing around 35, but its best to start developing good eating habits until then.

The article goes on to say that AGE's also deactivate the bodies natural anti-oxidant enzymes. So more wrinkles can occur!! This article even tells you how to avoid the sugars and how to reverse the wrinkles you have already got.

Enjoy your night

FDA is Addressing the Nutrition Labeling of Vending Items

How many of you can actually say you visibly see the nutrition label of items displayed in a vending machine??? Not many I assume......well there's hope, the FDA food labeling and standards staff will be leading a session next week regarding this issue. Under last year's healthcare reform, the disclosure of calories in food items being sold is mandated to be visible in all restaurants, fast food franchises AND even vending machines. I personally have yet to see any calories posted in clear view when I stare into a vending machine, but according to this article the FDA will be discussing the appropriate medium for communicating the message to consumers.

Meeting for Class

Hello All! Just wanted to remind you all that we will be meeting Thursday at 12pm in Biology Resource Center in MR to discuss our projects & the Earth Day event. Meet whoever you need to meet [Wellness Center, CBO's, etc.] before the meeting so that we have an idea of who we can get help from [pamphlets, test tubes w/ salt/sugar] and create flyers so we can show the professor and Jyoti in the event they want samples. Also, practice what you will say to students and staff and we can do a role play at the meeting Thursday. Let's be very productive!!! :)

Nutrition and activity quiz Are you living smart?

I found this quiz on the American Cancer Society web page.

This seemed interesting.

The questions are based on the what you eat and how physically active you are.

I want to know if it would be a good idea to put this quiz in the guide.

And if you want to know where you are standing take the quiz.

America's Top 10 Healthiest Fast Food Restaurants

Hey Guys,

I found this article that talks about restaurants that are healthy to eat in if your out of the house. Some of these restaurants include Panera Bread, Au Bon Pain, Chipotle and even McDonalds( ranked at #8). The website has some recommendations for healthy meals to order there. They also issue warnings about some of the unhealthy foods to avoid at the restaurant.

This could be a great guide if your out with you friends and want to be a healthy eater.

Enjoy!!

Top 10 underappreciated superfoods

Hello Guys,

I found this article about some common foods found is the grocery store that can improve the health and even reduce a persons chance of cancer. They include foods such as sunflower seeds, black pepper, sesame seeds and canned tomatoes. It lists the properties that each of these food products have that make them "superfoods". For example black pepper possesses a compound called capsaicin that has ani-cancer and anti-inflammatory effects.

Color your diet

Hey everyone,

This is something that Mike mentioned in our last week class and we the recipe group thought of including this idea in our section. The article discusses about healthy reasons to eat a rainbow of colorful fruits and vegetables. It is said that keeping the habit of at least 3 to 4 different colors or variety of fruits and vegetables on the plate can guide to live a healthy lifestyle.

Recipes Group

I know this is a little late in the game but I came across these pages in the Jan. issue of Good Housekeeping. I think the way they present these healthy recipes will really help catch the reader's attention...check these out and I hope they help you.