Assistant professor spoke as a BIPOC patient-scientist, drawing from her specialized knowledge as a social and behavioral scientist and two-time survivor of young adult cancer.
University of Maryland School of Social Work assistant professor Christabel Cheung, PhD, MSW, presented expert testimony to President Joe Biden’s Cancer Moonshot Team as part of a delegation of patient advocates, physicians, and scientists in adolescent and young adult oncology organized by Simon Davies at Teen Cancer America.
Cheung shared insights on disparities in cancer care and outcomes for patients diagnosed between ages 15-39, emphasizing the unmet needs of those who experience marginalization. She spoke as a BIPOC patient-scientist, drawing from her specialized knowledge as a social and behavioral scientist and two-time survivor of young adult cancer.
Cheung is a survivor of Hodgkin’s lymphoma who experienced the subtleties of racism that patients experience in the medical system.
The meeting, held at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, was led by Michael Roth, MD, from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and moderated by Lauren Lux, LCSW, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Representing Biden’s Cancer Moonshot Initiative were Arati Prabhakar, PhD, MS, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, and Danielle Carnival, PhD, deputy assistant to the president for the Cancer Moonshot. This first collaborative exchange paves the way for ongoing efforts to improve the well-being of teenagers and young adults living with cancer.
Biden reignited the Cancer Moonshot initiative this year, setting a new national goal to “cut the death rate from cancer by at least 50 percent over the next 25 years and improve the experience of people and their families living with and surviving cancer.”