comorbidities which we have seen painfully seen inflated in face of the pandemic.
But guess what? Amidst this apparent flood of gloom for cancer patients, there is equally an enormous opportunity to stay healthy and happy, easily securing the medication and care you need.
Admittedly, this is more practical than Utopian – in that you, society, and other healthcare stakeholders have a significant role to play in its realization. How about we explore how you can maximize this glimmer of hope, living your best life as a cancer patient or survivor?
Play a bigger role in the process
Would you be flattered if I tell you that you are a major stakeholder in the American healthcare system? Truth is you are! Rather than justwaiting meekly for the results, it is crucial to boldly jump in and partake in the process determining the results.
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For instance, there are loads of emerging technologies and therapies for cancer patients and survivors. According to Dr. Keith Crawford, director at PHEN (Prostate Health Education Network), Black men and women must tap into this, and massively partake in the clinical trials.
It is more imperative for Black women to champion this and get their hands on the steering wheels driving their destinies. A peep at black cancer statistics could get your heart leaping in fright.
Do you know that black women are 40% likelier to die from breast cancer than white women? This is even more prevalent for American states like North Carolina, Arkansas, Georgia, and Tennessee.
Indeed, there is a higher possibility of Black women (compared to white women) getting triple-negative breast. This is the infamous breast cancer known for its aggression and notoriety for resurging even after treatment.
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Today, the need has never been higher for localized medicine. Rather than the generic approach that has plagued us with mediocre results for decades, it is more urgent now to have medications personalized to a specific genome. How can we achieve this if we know sparsely about our genetic identity as Black cancer patients or survivors?
Therefore, Black people must take a massive chunk of responsibility in the formulation of these emerging technologies and therapies. More than just piling up the numbers for the clinical trial, more Black people should be allowed into critical decision positions involving clinical trial designs and securing posts in these trials’ advisory boards.
Drive awareness in your community
Do you know the biggest lie of 2020? It is that your voice doesn’t count as a Black cancer patient or survivor. Black breast cancer patients feel their position — as structurally dictated by society — is on the sidelines as idle spectators watching out how their destinies play out. NO!
According to Nanny Reece, an MBC Angel advocate and certified medical assistant who was diagnosed
