May 16, 2003

MGH celebrates National Minority Cancer Awareness Week

I n recognition of National Minority Cancer Awareness Week April 21 through 27, the MGH Cancer Center and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute sponsored an event for the MGH community "Making a Difference in Your Care: What You Need to Know About Cancer Prevention" April 24 in the O'Keeffe Auditorium.

Bruce Chabner, MD, clinical director of the Cancer Center; Elyse Park, PhD, clinical assistant in Psychology; and Chris Latham, MD, a hematology/oncology fellow, spoke about how members of the community can get the latest information about prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer; and about the racial disparities associated with cancer care and what the MGH is doing to address those disparities.

From left, Hammond, Chabner and Farrington

The second half of the program consisted of a panel of speakers that included Thomas Farrington, author of Battling the Killer Within;Courtneay Small, of MGH Clinical Pathology; and Hansella Robson, RN, MSN, of the Cancer Center. Farrington spoke of his challenges in navigating the health care system and finding the information he needed to make decisions about his own personal battle with cancer. He also spoke about his website, the Prostate Health Education Network (PHEN), and thework he currently is doing to educate the public about prostate cancer.

The goal of the event was to inform individuals about the many options in medical care, the significance of cancer prevention, the value of seeing a doctor once a year and the importance of knowing the proper questions to ask a doctor during an appointment.

The Cancer Center also sponsored "Caring for the Community," April 23 in the O'Keeffe Auditorium. Speakers included Rev. Ray Hammond, MD, of the Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Boston, as well as Chabner and Farrington. A reception followed with a book signing by Farrington.