Interrogating Patterns of Cancer Disparities by Expanding the Social Determinants of Health Framework to Include Biological Pathways of Social Experiences

Celina I. Valencia, Francine C. Gachupin, Yamilé Molina and Ken Batai
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Celina I. Valencia: Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine—Tucson, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85711, USA
Francine C. Gachupin: Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine—Tucson, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85711, USA
Yamilé Molina: Division of Community Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
Ken Batai: Department of Urology, College of Medicine—Tucson, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 4, 1-11

Abstract: The objective of this article is to call for integrating biological pathways of social experiences in the concept model of cancer disparities and social determinants of health (SDH) fields. Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) populations experience more negative outcomes across the cancer continuum. Social conditions are instrumental in better understanding the contemporary and historical constructs that create these patterns of disparities. There is an equally important body of evidence that points to the ways that social conditions shape biological pathways. To date, these areas of research are, for the most part, separate. This paper calls for a bridging of these two areas of research to create new directions for the field of cancer disparities. We discuss inflammation, epigenetic changes, co-morbidities, and early onset as examples of the biological consequences of social conditions that BIPOC populations experience throughout their lifespan that may contribute to disproportionate tumorigenesis and tumor progression.

Keywords: cancer disparities; social determinants of health; biosocial; structural racism; BIPOC (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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