SPEAKERS
and
PRESENTATION SUMMARIES

To view the biography of Dr. Samuel So, click on the link below:

http://med.stanford.edu/profiles/frdActionServlet?choiceId=facProfile&fid=4206

PRESENTATION SUMMARIES

Dr. Moon S. Chen, Jr.
Nov 18: "Cancer Control Issues Facing Asian Americans" is a two-hour session that delves into the unique, unusual, and unnecessary burden of cancer confronting Asian Americans. The Asian American cancer burden is unique in that Asian Americans are the first U.S. racial/ethnic population to experience cancer as the leading cause of death; for all other Americans, the leading cause of death is heart disease. Our cancer burden is unusual in that we experience both the cancers of chronic origin, e.g., breast cancer as well as the cancers of infectious origin, e.g., cervical cancer. Being a primarily foreign-born population but acculturating rapidly into the American mainstream may explain the dual threats to our health. Our cancer burden is unnecessary because there is considerable potential for prevention, control, and increased survivability that is not currently tapped.

Thus, during this session, major issues facing Asian Americans as they relate to our cancer burden will be discussed. Roles for individuals, groups as well as the interface of culture and behavior will be examined.

Nov 19: "What Asian Americans May Do to Reduce Their Cancer Risks" is a one-hour session that will delineate the principal risk factors that affect the likelihood of acquiring cancer. Ethnically-specific (e.g., Chinese, Filipino, and selected other ethnicities) cancer rates will be presented.

Differences among different Asian American groups will be discussed. Implications of ethnically-specific lifestyles and changing socio-cultural issues will be examined by selected Asian American ethnicities.