Massachusetts
Black women in Massachusetts invited to take part in groundbreaking cancer study
Black women are disproportionately impacted by cancer — especially breast and cervical cancer. Now, Black women in Massachusetts can take part in a multi-state study, which is planning to cover at least the next 30 years of their lives.
The “VOICES of Black Women” is a study led by the American Cancer Society to investigate exactly why Black women die of certain cancers more than any other racial and ethnic group, and what factors in their lives could be the cause of the mortality.
“There’s so many women who could talk about experiences through, their doctors, through their lifestyles, that could help the future women,” said Nekia Clark, director of patient services and outreach at the Ellie Fund, a Needham-based nonprofit that works to support people diagnosed with breast cancer.
To register, Black women must be between the ages of 25 to 55 and never had cancer. They will be followed by researchers to see how Black women’s medical history, lifestyle, and encounters with racism impact their risks of the disease.
The goal is to enroll at least 100,000 women across 20 states and Washington, D.C. Once qualifications are met, women can participate by completing an online health and life history survey and updating health information twice a year for at least 30 years.
Image courtesy of American Cancer Society
Breast cancer kills Black women at a 40% higher rate than white women, according to the National Cancer Institute. For cervical cancer, that number is 60% more likely, according to a report in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine.
“VOICES of Black Women represents a crucial step toward achieving health equity in a population that is long overdue,” said Dr. Alpa Patel, co-principal investigator of the study and senior vice president of population science at the American Cancer Society. “By centering Black women’s voices and experiences, we can dig deeper in uncovering the unique challenges and barriers contributing to cancer disparities and develop tailored interventions to mitigate them.”
Clark is also a breast cancer survivor and had her disease caught early. But she lost her mother to a resurgence of cancer in 2020. Clark said she tells countless Black women that it’s important to advocate for themselves.
“If you’re educated on your health, you’re able to advocate for yourself to your doctor and know if that doctor is not listening to you, you can go to another doctor who will listen.”
Clark said she often hears that “it’s a wait and watch” approach for Black female patients. They go into some doctor’s office’s with symptoms of breast cancer, and they’re told to “just keep watching it.” The gaslighting can have catastrophic impacts, she said.
“It results in an early-stage cancer becoming a late-stage cancer where it’s metastatic. And they have to continue treatment for the rest of their life and eventually they will die from the disease.”
Jani Raynor, 46, is a year into remission from breast cancer. She has several female and male friends in other states who felt like their doctors didn’t listen to their concerns about symptoms. While she didn’t have diagnoses issues, Raynor said she suffered from a lack of support to get preventive care in Massachusetts.
“I never felt like I was encouraged to make sure that I was getting my mammogram or that I was doing self-examinations,’’ she said. “I definitely do those because I have breast cancer history in my family.”
Local providers say the study is important, especially given the lack of focus on Black women historically in clinical trials.
“We know that a lot of the reasons why these rates for Black women are related to systemic racism,” said Rachel Preiss, a women’s health nurse practitioner at The Dimock Center in Roxbury. “We know that it occurs on multiple levels, and we know that that leads to multiple avenues of missing breast cancer in patients.”
The Dimock Center, she said, is less involved with treatment, and more involved in preventive care. That means making sure women have mammograms, and ordering exams that could diagnose cancer early. Sometimes, that means being a patient’s second opinion.
“For cancer and everything else, I can’t tell you the number of times that I’ve sat with a patient, and they told me that another provider just didn’t listen to them,” Preiss said.
As libraries across western Massachusetts celebrate National Library Week from April 19 to April 25, they are honoring “the last real third space where everyone is welcome,” in the words of Greenfield Public Library Assistant Director Lisa Prolman.
According to the American Library Association, National Library Week is “an annual celebration highlighting the valuable role libraries and library professionals play in transforming lives and strengthening our communities.” This year, several libraries in the region will be hosting events to highlight the roles they play in their communities.
The Athol Public Library is among the venues engaging in National Library Week festivities, with a whole host of events starting on Tuesday, April 21, with Silly Goose Story Time at 10:30 a.m. The library will hold multiple events each day, including “Free Book Friday” on April 24, which Assistant Director Robin Shtulman said is “really fantastic.”
Shtulman said the week celebrates and emphasizes the “freedom to read, community outreach and celebrating the staff, without whom nothing would happen.”
The Athol Public Library said in an event announcement that “whatever brings you joy, the library has something for everyone,” and that aspect is being emphasized this National Library Week. To name a few of the events on tap, on Tuesday, April 21, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., there’s a volunteer opportunity where teens will make greeting cards for senior citizens; “A Minecraft Movie” will be shown at the same date and time; and on Thursday, April 23, the library will host Scavenger Hunt Bingo for all ages. For a full list of events at the Athol Public Library, visit atholpubliclibrary.com.
In Shelburne Falls, the Arms Library will feature a gallery from the Carlos Heiligmann Collection, a series of photos of public libraries across western Massachusetts. Also in collaboration with the Arms Library, Pothole Pictures and the Shelburne Falls Area Women’s Club will partner for a screening of “Free For All: The Public Library” on Saturday, April 25, at 2 p.m. at the Shelburne Falls Theater at Memorial Hall.
The documentary focuses on the evolution of the public library from its origins in the 19th century and the challenges it faces today, with modern-day issues such as book bans, funding cuts and debates over censorship.
It also explores the role that women’s clubs, like the one in Shelburne Falls, played in creating the modern library system. To serve their communities, women’s clubs took the lead in fundraising, collecting books and advocating for library legislation.
“Our women’s club in this town started with a group of 60 women who were gathering for lessons. … Because of the support of women in the U.S., we established over 80% of the public libraries [in the country],” said Christin Couture, program chair for the Shelburne Falls Area Women’s Club. “This film … I hear it’s so fascinating.”
Following the film’s screening, there will be a panel of local librarians who will engage in “lively conversation” about the history and future of public libraries. Tickets are $6, though school-age children will be admitted for free.
In Charlemont, Tyler Memorial Library will host an open house on Saturday, April 25, from noon to 2 p.m. featuring refreshments, a tour of the library and sun catcher crafting.
The Greenfield Public Library, meanwhile, is taking National Library Week in a bit of a different direction, as it is offering a book repair demonstration with Tom Hutcheson on Thursday, April 23, at 3:30 p.m. The day marks William Shakespeare’s birthday.
Although the book repair session required registration and is currently full, those who are interested may be placed on a waiting list at greenfieldpl.libcal.com/event/16460179.
Greenfield Public Library Director Anna Bognolo recognized the hard work that everyone has put into making the library a success, offering a “huge thank you” to the volunteers and staff who make its varied offerings possible.
“Stop by and support your library,” Bognolo said.
“Libraries, especially in this economy, are more important than ever,” Prolman said. Referencing the library’s role as a place where community members can go that is not work or home, she added, “They are the last real third space where everyone is welcome, and we don’t charge you for being here.”
Massachusetts
New Bedford MS-13 Member, Illegal Alien Pleads Guilty to Role in Brutal Murders In Massachusetts, Virginia
Frankli
Police shot and killed a man who officials say rushed officers with a knife during a call in Lexington, Massachusetts, on Saturday.
Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said the situation started around 1:40 p.m. when Lexington police received a 911 call from a resident of Mason Street reporting that his son had injured himself with a knife.
Officers from the Lexington Police Department and officers from the Northeastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council (NEMLEC), who were already in town for Patriots’ Day events, responded to the call.
Police were able to escort two other residents out of the home, initially leaving a 26-year-old man inside. According to Ryan, while officers were setting up outside, the man ran out of the home and approached officers with a large kitchen knife.
She added that police tried twice to use non-lethal force, but it was not effective in stopping him. The man was shot by a Wilmington police officer who is a member of NEMLEC. The man was pronounced dead on scene and the officer who fired that shot was taken to a local hospital as a precaution.
The man’s name has not been released.
Ryan said typically in a call like this where someone was described as harming themselves, officers would first try to separate anyone else to keep them out of danger, which was done, and then standard practice would be to try to wait outside.
“It would be their practice to just wait for the person to come out. In the terrible circumstances of today, he suddenly rushed the officers, still clutching the knife,” Ryan said.
The investigation is still in the preliminary stages and more information is expected in time. Ryan said her office will request a formal inquest from the court to review whether any criminal conduct has occurred, which is the standard process.
This happened around the same time as the annual Patriots’ Day Parade, and just hours after a reenactment of the Battle of Lexington, which drew large crowds to town.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
-
New York36 minutes agoGotti Grandson Is Sentenced to 15 Months for Covid Relief Fraud
-
Detroit, MI1 hour agoWhy a Detroit family’s $300 brick repair job turned into a fraud investigation
-
San Francisco, CA1 hour agoSea lion pup found in San Francisco’s Outer Sunset malnourished but ‘feisty’
-
Dallas, TX1 hour agoDallas Cowboys 2026 NFL Draft debate heats up
-
Miami, FL2 hours agoMan arrested in Miami for alleged sexual battery on 10-year-old girl – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports | Fort Lauderdale
-
Boston, MA2 hours agoFormer BYU star Clayton Young crushes lifetime best in Boston — on short notice
-
Denver, CO2 hours agoColorado boasts two of the best coffee shops in the Americas, according to new ranking
-
Seattle, WA2 hours agoDelta flight from Seoul to Atlanta diverted to Seattle after report of suspicious package