Immigrant Health & Cancer Disparities Service
Racial and ethnic minorities now make up one-third of the United States population, and approximately three million residents of New York City were born outside the country. Immigrants and minorities experience disproportionately higher cancer incidence and mortality rates for many cancers. Decreased access to treatment, end-of-life care, survivorship services, and clinical trials are also rife among minorities.
Services for Immigrants with Cancer
If you or someone you know is an immigrant with cancer and is in need of assistance, please call the Immigrant Health and Cancer Disparities Service at 646-888-4600.
The Immigrant Health and Cancer Disparities Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center works to identify the causes of health and cancer disparities among underserved populations and to develop solutions to alleviate them. We use a multidisciplinary, community-engaged approach to understand and address disparities at the local, national, and global levels. We conduct research, provide services to people in need, and train others to recognize and address these issues. We are also working to develop a research infrastructure that enables and encourages the equitable participation of the underserved in clinical trials and other research activities.
The Immigrant Health and Cancer Disparities Service uses evidence-based, culturally responsive approaches to enhance the quality of service for underserved populations. We consider socioeconomic and linguistic factors in everything we do. The services we provide are relevant for all phases of cancer care, including education, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, and the end of life.
Through our training programs we are developing a cadre of well-trained practitioners and scientists who are representative of the populations we serve. Finally, we are evaluating the impact of these integrated efforts on outcomes across diverse populations.
Our Projects
The Immigrant Health and Cancer Disparities Service leads the following projects. Please contact our staff at the links below for more information.
Language Initiatives
Twenty five percent of New York City's population has limited proficiency in English. Increasingly, areas across the nation face a similar challenge of how to care for large populations with limited English proficiency. The Language Initiatives Program is a national leader in improving immigrant and refugee communities' access to, and experience with, the health care system. Language Initiatives accomplishes its mission through research; education and training; program and policy development; and technical assistance. We have developed a number of innovative programs in collaboration with health care providers and administrators, social scientists, researchers, and community members to provide culturally and linguistically sensitive health services, including the groundbreaking Remote Simultaneous Medical Interpreting system.
For more information about the Language Initiatives Program, or to get involved, please contact Javier Gonzalez.
Immigrant Cancer Care Action Network (ICCAN) Cancer Portal Project
Socioeconomic factors can be key deterrents to completing cancer treatment among the underserved. ICCAN brings together community members, providers, and policy makers to tackle barriers that prevent immigrants and people from other underserved communities from accessing cancer treatment. We address these barriers by providing culturally responsive, tailored case management services for patients at twelve hospitals. ICCAN provides access to insurance, transportation, and food, as well as legal, financial, and other resources to ease the patients' experience and enable them to complete their care. We have compiled a detailed resource guide for community workers, social workers, and patient navigators, and provide training for hospital staff. Additionally, we conduct intervention and outcomes research to determine and address patients' greatest needs and barriers to healthcare.
For more information about the Cancer Portal Project, or to get involved, please contact Julia Ramirez.
Food to Overcome Outcome Disparities (FOOD)
Sixty percent of underserved cancer patients in New York have been found to be food insecure. In August 2010, the FOOD project established the first food pantry in the country tailored to the needs of immigrants with cancer, in partnership with the Food Bank for New York City. Following the initial rollout and testing, the pantry is expanding to several additional facilities in Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. We have also developed a pilot Food Vouchers for Health program and are working to develop policy solutions to the problem of hunger among cancer patients.
For more information about FOOD, or to get involved, please contact Julia Ramirez.
South Asian Health Initiative (SAHI)
SAHI was founded in 2004 in response to the growing number of South Asian immigrants in the United States and their particular health needs. The initiative is a partnership of community and faith-based organizations, public health practitioners, healthcare providers, researchers, and advocates. SAHI facilitates the delivery of linguistically, culturally, and epidemiologically sensitive healthcare services to South Asian communities. Over the last seven years SAHI has established a strong presence within the South Asian community of New York City and neighboring areas. We are leading a variety of projects to address risk factors for cardiovascular disease and cancer, including STOP PAAN (Smokeless Tobacco Oral Pathology Prevention and Awareness Network), STEP (Supporting Taxi Drivers to Exercise through Pedometers), and the Queensbridge Health Fair program.
For more information about SAHI, or to get involved, please contact sahi@mskcc.org.
Arab American Breast Cancer Education and Referral Program (AMBER)
AMBER makes it easier for Arab American women in New York City to utilize breast cancer early-detection services. The program provides education and coordinates screening in ways that are culturally and linguistically appropriate. We provide Arabic language health education, patient navigation services, cultural competency training for healthcare professionals, and support services for women diagnosed with breast cancer.
For more information about AMBER, or to get involved, please contact Claudia Ayash.
HPV Vaccine Practices
We are conducting studies to improve usage of the HPV vaccine in underserved communities. One study is assessing the extent to which physicians utilize the HPV vaccine among their minority, high-risk patient population. The study is also exploring physicians' knowledge of, attitudes toward, beliefs regarding, and barriers to recommending the HPV vaccine. Another study aims to understand parents' attitudes toward the use of the HPV vaccine in Puebla, Mexico, and New York, and how this knowledge might guide health policy.
For more information about these projects, or to get involved, please contact Abraham Aragones.
Chinese American Cancer Care Access Program
This project uses research and tailored service delivery to enable the large and growing Chinese immigrant community to access linguistically and culturally tailored cancer treatment and support services. Program activities are informed by a coalition of community-based groups, service providers, and researchers.
For more information about the Chinese American Cancer Care Access Program, or to get involved, please contact Jennifer Leng.
Leadership
Francesca Gany, MD, MS is the Chief of the Immigrant Health and Cancer Disparities Service, and a Director of the South Asian Health Initiative. She works to bridge immigrants, minority community members, and the medically underserved with the healthcare system, and to eliminate health disparities. Her groundbreaking work has led to an improvement in health outcomes and to the development of long-term clinical, health policy, and programmatic changes.
Please Join Us
If you are multilingual, enjoy working with patients, and have an interest in public health, please consider volunteering or interning with us.
If you are looking to make a considerable impact in reducing disparities in healthcare for NYC immigrants, please consider making a donation to support our work.
For more information about how you can help, please contact the relevant program manager at the links above, or call us at 646-888-4600.
