The Cancer Clear and Simple podcast will be hosted by Joshua Wright, community project coordinator with the UW Carbone Cancer Health Disparities Initiative. The CHDI team is focused on thoughtful, culturally-sensitive outreach and education for communities who face a higher cancer burden, as well as building partnerships and fostering new research to address those inequity issues.
“The underserved populations that we’re seeing here in Wisconsin include African-American, Latinx, American Indian, Hmong, Rural and LGBTQ+. Fortunately, we have representation from all of those communities working at CHDI,” said Dr. Earlise Ward, program leader of CHDI.
Research shows that these populations face barriers that lead to lower cancer screening rates and preventive care, and in turn lead to higher rates of diagnoses and death from cancer. Factors that influence these trends include economic stability, education access, healthcare access, the environment where these people live, and societal and community support.
In the first episode of Cancer Clear and Simple, meet the CHDI team to hear more about how UW Carbone is building relationships and enhancing education statewide, including the creation of Community Advocacy Boards with volunteers from specific underserved populations and key community stakeholders. Having community-centric groups creates trust and a direct line of communication about unique concerns, needs and priorities that can guide CHDI efforts.
“The community knows best, and so following their lead has a more positive impact, I think, in being able to enhance the relevance of the work, and being able to disseminate the information more meaningfully,” said Ashley Smith, RN, an outreach specialist for CHDI focused on rural cancer needs and outreach to American Indian tribes in Wisconsin.
Dr. Cibele Barbosa Carroll also discusses her work as a population health scientist studying cancer disparities in the U.S. as well as globally and how to apply practical solutions.
“I support cancer center faculty members in assessing, understanding, measuring what are the problems that these communities and population are facing, and this assessment and research is always in the context of trying to think about more than identifying and measuring the problem, we want to think about strategies and solutions that can mitigate, decrease the problems that are driving these worse outcomes,” Carroll said.
Through each episode in this first season of Cancer Clear and Simple, CHDI will spotlight the experiences of those who face health barriers, including patient perspectives and community leaders, and the work underway to find solutions that keep everyone healthier.
“The cancer conversation needs input from lots of different perspectives,” Wright said. “This podcast will add valuable insights and meaningful experiences to the landscape of health discussions. I’m excited to learn and share with the guests and community of listeners.”
More information about the podcast can be found on the Cancer Clear and Simple website. Episodes of the podcast can be accessed on the UW Carbone YouTube and streaming platforms Spotify, Apple and Amazon.