The African-American cancer crisis, Part II: A prescription

Abstract

To appreciate the causes of the African-American cancer crisis, contemporary myths and perceptual gaps regarding cancer in blacks must be analyzed and placed in historical context. Since ancient times, racism has permeated western scientific, medical, and social cultures. Yet contemporary analysts typically frame a 370-year-old African-American health deficit in nonracial terms, and ignore both the metamorphosis of racism and the impact of racism on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer; exposure to cancer-causing industrial pollutants; educational opportunities for black health professionals and policymakers, and other factors. If the African-American cancer crisis is to be halted, the growing divergence between urgent needs and meager resources devoted to preventing, detecting, and treating cancer in blacks must be sharply reversed.