sparks & honey’s Post

April is National Minority Health Month! Research shows that the overall rate of #cancer screening is lower among Black, Hispanic, Asian, and AIAN populations compared to their white counterparts. Our Health Equity Workgroup continues developing essential guidance and strategies to understand how #MCED technologies might impact #disparities in cancer screening and to support equitable opportunity for MCED research study participation. Explore our health #equity resources here: https://lnkd.in/ecn2kp97

Hey ladies! This past month the Biden administration issued an executive order on advancing women's health research and innovation. These are the primary areas of focus outlined in the EO: • Integrate women's health across the federal research portfolio • Prioritize investments in women's health research • Galvanize new research on women's midlife health • Help assess unmet needs to support women's health research It's no secret that women's health research has been historically underfunded. What amazing potential this EO could mean for women's health outcomes. Below is a visualization (nature, Kerry Smith, 2023) of the life-saving potential impact achieved by doubling the women-focused research budget across 4 conditions that disproportionately affect women – rheumatoid arthritis, coronary artery disease, Alzheimer’s disease and lung cancer. Incredible! Check out the full article here: https://lnkd.in/e2XUbrZG

Join us for the second dialogue in WHAM's #3Not30 Virtual Roundtable Series as we focus on accelerating research, innovation, and investment in women's health over the next three years!    This month, we're turning our attention to women’s heart health—a critical topic for the health of all women. Esteemed leaders in this field will delve into the current landscape of the number one killer of women and unveil our ambitious goals for the next three years.   🔗 REGISTER NOW: bit.ly/3not30hearthealth   📆 Date: Thursday, February 15th ⏰ Time: 1-2 pm ET   The call for change in 3Not30 is here, and together, we actively shape the future of women’s health. Don't miss this opportunity to be a part of the conversation and drive meaningful impact! ⁠ Thank you to everyone who contributed to the creation of the 3Not30 goals:  Michael Annichine (Magee-Womens Research Institute & Foundation), Tom Cassels (Rock Health), Dr. Janine Austin Clayton (The National Institutes of Health), Esther Dyson, Jessica J. Federer, Laurie Fenton Ambrose (GO2 for Lung Cancer), Dr. Lori Frank, Maria C. Freire, Ph.D., Dr. Elizabeth Garner (Ferring Pharmaceuticals; American Medical Women's Association (AMWA)), Dr. Julie Gerberding (Foundation for the National Institutes of Health), Stacy Pagos Haller (BrightFocus Foundation), Marsha Henderson, Dr. Hadine Joffe, MD MSc (Mary Horrigan Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology; Brigham and Women's Hospital; Harvard Medical School), Sasha Kelemen (Leerink Partners), Sheila Ann Mikhail (Asklepios BioPharmaceutical, Inc. (AskBio)), Melissa Gong Mitchell (Global Coalition on Aging), Stacey E. Rosen, MD, FACC, FACP, FAHA (Northwell Health), Dr. Erica Ollmann Saphire (La Jolla Institute for Immunology), Ashraf (Ash) Shehata (KPMG US), Dr. Ellen Sigal (Friends of Cancer Research), Ramita Tandon (Walgreens)   #WHAMnow #WomensHealth #HeartHealth #Research #Innovation #Investment #VirtualRoundtable #HealthcareFuture

Reflecting on Women's Health Awareness Week: Amplifying the Dialogue on Cancer and Wellness! 🌟 💡 Engage with Us: What topics interest you? How can we raise awareness and support important health issues? Share your ideas and feedback below. Let's amplify the dialogue and empower individuals to prioritize their health! Here's a recap of our focus areas: 🔬 Cancer Research and Women's Health: We highlighted the need for increased funding for women-specific cancers. For example, breast cancer research receives $2.73 billion out of the total $24.5 billion allocated for cancer research, crucial for the one in four women affected by cancer who have breast cancer. 😌 Empowering Women's Health and Wellness: From reproductive health to mental well-being, we explored various aspects of women's health and innovative startups leading the charge. 🚀 AI in HealthTech: Transforming Cancer Detection and Treatment 🤖 AI revolutionizes healthcare, especially in cancer detection and treatment. By analyzing vast medical data, AI identifies patterns beyond human perception, enhances early detection, and enables personalized prevention strategies, improving patient outcomes and saving lives. 📢 Call to Action: Tag someone who has inspired your health journey and invite them to join our community. Let's support and empower one another towards better health! Let's make a difference in women's health advocacy and cancer awareness. #CancerAwareness #WomenHealth #AIinHealthTech

The White House recently unveiled "The US Playbook to Address Social Determinants of Health (SDOH)," shedding light on how SDOH issues impact cancer. 📚💙 Our Health Equity Workgroup released a comprehensive analysis titled "Patient Barriers to Care: A Health Equity Landscape Analysis for Emerging Multicancer Early Detection Tests." In this insightful analysis, we delve into the intricate web of demographic factors and social determinants of health—such as economic stability, education, and healthcare access—that pose barriers to effective cancer prevention, screening, diagnosis, and treatment services. 📌 Explore the in-depth strategies outlined in our analysis on our Workgroup Products page: 1️⃣ Emphasize Patient-Centered Care: Foster effective patient-physician communication, empowering patients to make informed choices in cancer testing decision-making. 2️⃣ Educational Interventions and Outreach: Implement educational initiatives, community outreach programs, and increased provider recommendations for testing and research studies to effectively engage underrepresented groups. 3️⃣ Health System-Community Partnerships: Forge strong collaborations between health systems and community organizations to create wide-reaching venues for cancer testing education and on-site opportunities. 4️⃣ Innovative Interventions: Utilize interventions and communication methods beyond provider recommendations, such as reminder letters, phone calls, text messages, flexible appointments, and community-based testing. https://lnkd.in/ecn2kp97 #HealthEquity #CancerPrevention #SDOH #CommunityHealth #InclusiveHealthcare

Knowledge is power, especially when it comes to your health! Why accessibility matters: - Empowerment: Awareness enables people to make informed decisions and take charge of their well-being. - Inclusion: Everyone has a right to equal access to health information. - The European Accessibility Act: This upcoming legislation emphasizes the importance of clear and accessible healthcare information. Our Partnership with Prostate Cancer Research UK: A Real-World Example We're proud to partner with Prostate Cancer Research UK, who share our commitment to accessible information. By integrating ReadSpeaker's webReader and docReader on their website, they offer users: - Lifelike Text-to-Speech (TTS) - Accessible PDFs & Word Documents This is just one example of how accessible information can empower individuals to take control of their health. Let's work together to make health information a right, not a privilege! #WorldHealthDay #HealthForAll #HealthcareAccessibility #ReadSpeaker #Empowerment #Inclusion

Today is World Cancer Day, and the current theme revolves around addressing the Care Gap. So, what is the Care Gap? Unfortunately, half the world's population lacks access to essential health services, creating an equity gap in cancer care. Barriers rooted in income, education, location, and discrimination hinder access, and disadvantaged groups face additional risk factors like tobacco and unhealthy diets. The gap is pervasive and likely affects you or people in your community. Micropos Medical's vision is to play an important role in the modern treatment of prostate cancer. We believe there is great potential in working together as a community to create solutions that are easy for the healthcare sector to implement and promote the quality of life for patients. We are grateful to be a part of such an important endeavor, and, together with our dedicated team, valued partners, and clinicians, we work hard every day to advance in this field. We hope that days like this can bring people together so that we can collectively close this gap for better global health. 🌍💙 #WorldCancerDay #CloseTheCareGap #HealthEquity

https://lnkd.in/dqD45QCs "Close the care gap" This theme strikes my heart very dearly as someone, who between me & my partner has lost 3 of our parents to various manifestations of this disease several years ago. Treatments were delayed in search of finances to make it possible, resulting in missed appointments, postponed treatment choices - and disease progress. At the relatively early age, before either of us embarked in a career, we became acutely aware of the disparities in health - more so, for illnesses like cancer - even when treatable as they are in many situations, a multitude of factors determine if every patient around the world actually receives the most medically appropriate treatment & care for their medical situation. A variety of reasons have prompted me to take up immunology studies after med school (to this day, I'm enormously thankful for the courage & support I had from my partner for that Parrvathee Rejitha ). Nevertheless, the disparities in global health care, especially for equitable access to care & resources for the treatment of serious illnesses, is a theme that has ever since remained dear to me - as it is for many many people world over. That said, I also acknowledge the changes, the awareness - sometimes as painfully slow as they are - still helps move our world positively forward; and the challenges that remain. Our approaches, scientifically, to understand this incredibly heterogenous disease now in more detail than ever before possible - by combining innovative thoughts fused with powerful methods, taking advantage of systems approaches, AI, etc. - have made it possible to work in relatively more efficient, profound, cost effective ways to tackle important challenges (for example in modelling the interaction between networks, integrating different datasets to gain a more comprehensive perspective or in choosing the right drug candidate - so on & so forth). We can be hopeful of the future years where we can progressively improve our understanding of the disease, continuously improve the screening & treatment options - and to make them progressively accessible to larger sections of our global society. #worldcancerday

Alumnae mentorship duo discover rising cervical cancer rates in low-income women in a new study. Trisha Amboree, PhD, MPH, and Jane Montealegre, PhD, have worked to uplift each other and women's health research since being introduced six years before the collaborative publication. "I believe it is very important for younger generations to see women represented in leadership positions as this can help show them the great things that are possible," said Trisha Amboree, PhD, MPH, lead author, on seeing her mentor public drive public health forward. Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/gDVkfpHW #WomensHealthMonth

May is Women’s Health Month. Did you know women spend 25% more of their lives in poor health compared to men (per a McKinsey & Company report)? We aim to help fix this by developing tests that address medical needs uniquely affecting women, starting w/gynecological cancer. #WomensHealthMonth