People who’ve had cancer understand that survival is linked to having the right health coverage and resources to fight the disease. But it’s one thing to understand that on a general level. It’s another thing to see the stark reality on a big screen.
Those attending the Alabama Vision Summit this month had an opportunity to see the disparities in full, living color, thanks to a recorded presentation from Edward Partridge, the director of UAB’s Comprehensive Cancer Center.
The charts Dr. Partridge used showed urvival rates based not only on variables such as race and stage at diagnosis — but also on insurance status.
One stunning chart showed that people with stage 2 colon cancer – and health insurance — had better survival rates than uninsured people with stage 1 colon cancer.
The implications are beyond disturbing. It suggests that early detection isn’t enough if patients don’t have health coverage to get the care they need.
UAB has undertaken several efforts to address some of the disparities in cancer rates and outcomes, often training community navigators to focus on prevention and lifestyle changes, improved screening, and participation in clinical trials.
The goo
d news is, those efforts have paid dividends. The bad news is that there is still much work to be done!
Too many disparities remain.
We as cancer survivors need to be the most vocal advocates for all the things we know will make a difference – lifestyle choices (please don’t smoke!!!), appropriate screening (there is no reason in the world to think a colonoscopy is worse than colon cancer!!!) and research, research, research (we believe in the cancer moonshot!!!).
We can’t rest until we see survival rates increase across the board!