Cancer Hits Black Women Harder. For One Scientist, It’s Personal

 by Jennifer Porter Gore, WordInBlack

After losing his grandmother to the disease–and supporting his wife through two diagnoses–behavioral scientist Charles Rogers says lived experience, mistrust, and systemic inequities affect how Black women seek breast cancer prevention.

As a behavioral scientist who studies the intersection of cancer and race, Charles Rogers knows the data: More Black women die from breast cancer than white women, even though the overall rate of cancer deaths in the U.S. has fallen during the past two decades. 

As a grandson and husband, however, his understanding of how a breast cancer diagnosis can devastate loved ones is far more intimate — and painful. 

“My first encounter with breast cancer was as an undergraduate when I lost my grandmother to the disease,” says Rogers, a nationally recognized researcher whose work focuses on equitable cancer prevention, early detection, and culturally responsive care. “She was the heart of our family. Losing her forced me to confront how illness moves through generations and how silence and delayed care can cost us dearly.”

Continue reading…Cancer Hits Black Women Harder. For One Scientist, It’s Personal

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