Striving to Understand Disparities in Cancer Care

A key element of the mission of the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center–Jefferson Health—and an objective of many researchers across the University—is to understand and mitigate the disparities in cancer incidence, treatment and outcome too often experienced by patients who are African American or Latinx, have low incomes or have limited access to care. In the Philadelphia region, for example, prostate cancer incidence and mortality rates are significantly higher for African Americans than Caucasians, but the causes of this major disparity are unknown. Many researchers have believed that the difference in outcomes results from African American men’s poor clinical response to existing treatment for advanced disease, as compared to Caucasian men’s response. But a groundbreaking study—led by William Kevin Kelly, DO, professor of medical oncology and urology—directly challenges that long-held concept