Fox Chase Cancer Center’s Camille Ragin to Co-Chair AACR Conference on Cancer Health Disparities

Camille Ragin, PhD, MPH, Associate Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Fox Chase Cancer Center
Camille Ragin, PhD, MPH, Associate Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Fox Chase Cancer Center

PHILADELPHIA (September 12, 2022)—Camille Ragin, PhD, MPH, Associate Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Fox Chase Cancer Center, will serve as co-chair and participate in a panel discussion at this year’s 15th Annual American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved.

“As co-chairs we oversee the scientific content of this program and come up with innovative ways to make sure that we’re focusing on important issues that are related to cancer health disparities,” Ragin said.

She will also be part of a panel discussion about addressing advocacy for researchers, which was organized by the advocacy program within the AACR. The panel discussion will focus on addressing cultural literacy and competence by highlighting case studies of community-based initiatives that help shape policies and interventions that promote cultural competence.

The conference, which is being held September 16-19 in Philadelphia, will also include presentations on recent findings from top-rated research as well as sessions on professional advancement and methods for addressing disparities globally. It will also cover a wide scope of topics, with an emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).

“We’re going to have a panel discussion and several talks around DEI, which has become a major topic in science over the past several years. We’ve taken this opportunity for our participants to engage in conversations about DEI and what it really means to each of us, as well as what we can do to really address diversity, equity, and inclusion as researchers,” said Ragin.

In addition to her role as associate director of DEI at Fox Chase, Ragin is a professor in the Cancer Prevention and Control research program, where she focuses on cancer disparities affecting populations of African descent. She has dedicated her career to understanding why Blacks have the highest incidence and death rates as well as the shortest survival for most cancers in comparison to all other racial and ethnic groups.

As part of her work, Ragin founded the African Caribbean Cancer Consortium in 2006. Its purpose is to investigate and respond to increasing cancer vulnerability of African-descended populations worldwide. She has also done extensive work toward building a cancer research infrastructure in the Caribbean and also established the Cancer Prevention Project of Philadelphia (CAP3), a multicultural, community based cancer-prevention registry.

Fox Chase Cancer Center (Fox Chase), which includes the Institute for Cancer Research and the American Oncologic Hospital and is a part of Temple Health, is one of the leading comprehensive cancer centers in the United States. Founded in 1904 in Philadelphia as one of the nation’s first cancer hospitals, Fox Chase was also among the first institutions to be designated a National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center in 1974. Fox Chase is also one of just 10 members of the Alliance of Dedicated Cancer Centers. Fox Chase researchers have won the highest awards in their fields, including two Nobel Prizes. Fox Chase physicians are also routinely recognized in national rankings, and the Center’s nursing program has received the Magnet recognition for excellence six consecutive times. Today, Fox Chase conducts a broad array of nationally competitive basic, translational, and clinical research, with special programs in cancer prevention, detection, survivorship, and community outreach. It is the policy of Fox Chase Cancer Center that there shall be no exclusion from, or participation in, and no one denied the benefits of, the delivery of quality medical care on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity/expression, disability, age, ancestry, color, national origin, physical ability, level of education, or source of payment.

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