Dr. Ellen Li, center, and colleagues are investigating GI cancer biology in race and ethnicity. Members of Dr. Li’s research team include, from left: Dr. Jennie Williams, Dr. Suman Grewal, Matthew Murray, Leahana Rowehl, Dr. Juan Carlos Bucobo, Dr. Joel Salz, and Dr. Gerardo MacKenzie.
The research initiative, supported by a $1.2 million NCI grant, combines the expertise of Stony Brook, SUNY Downstate, and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories
Stony Brook, NY, November 4, 2015 – Americans of African descent are at a significantly higher risk for developing and dying from Gastrointestinal (GI) cancers, which include colorectal and pancreatic cancers, compared to individuals who are of Caucasian descent. Because of this health disparity, researchers from Stony Brook University, SUNY Downstate, and the National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL), are teaming up to launch a program to assess GI cancer biology in patients.
The initiative, supported by a four-year NCI grant totaling nearly $1.2 million, and initial funding from a SUNY Health Network of Excellence grant, will evaluate the biological and genetic differences of GI cancers in race and ethnicity. The goal of the research is to link the biological findings to differences in GI cancer incidence and outcomes observed in racial and ethnic minorities.
According to the American Cancer Society, colorectal cancer remains the second most common cause of cancer death in the United States, and it strikes African Americans more than any other racial group. African Americans with colorectal cancer are also approximately 40 percent more likely to die from colorectal cancer compared to individuals from other racial groups who have the disease. Additionally, African Americans have the highest incidence of pancreatic cancer of all racial groups. According to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, that rate is 31 percent to 65 percent higher than other racial groups...Read More HERE