Free webinar on taking action to reduce cancer disparities scheduled for Friday, Nov. 15, by health foundation

The Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky‘s next “Health for a Change” webinar is titled “Taking ACTION to Reduce Cancer Disparities.” It will be held Friday, Nov. 15, from noon to 1 p.m. ET.

The free event will explore programs working to address the cancer disparities in Eastern Kentucky. Click here to register.

Kentucky ranks first in the nation in overall cancer incidence and second in overall cancer mortality rates, with the greatest burden of the disease being in the Appalachian region of the state.

“Living in Appalachian Kentucky makes a person more likely to be diagnosed with cancer and more likely to die from the disease compared to the rest of the state,” says a foundation news release. “There are many things that contribute to these higher rates, and it is clear that action needs to be taken.”

The webinar will address the key health behaviors and social determinants driving these disparities and learn about a cancer education intervention that aims to address the education and cancer disparities in Appalachian Kentucky while hearing from active students in the program, called the ACTION Program. The ACTION Program is led by Markey Cancer Center and stands for Appalachian Career Training in Oncology.

The webinar’s scheduled speakers are:

• Nathan Vanderford, associate professor of Toxicology and Cancer Biology at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and the director of  the ACTION Program
• Holly Burke, program coordinator of  the ACTION Program and the UK Markey Cancer Center’s Summer Healthcare Experience in Oncology Program, or SHE Program
• Kennedy Lamb, ACTION Program undergraduate student
• Eryka Criswell, ACTION Program undergraduate student
• Caylee Caudill, ACTION Program undergraduate student