Abstract IA13: Multilevel studies for better understanding the Hispanic immigrant paradox across the cancer continuum

Abstract

Abstract The “Hispanic paradox” refers to observed favorable health outcomes among U.S. Hispanics relative to non-Hispanic Whites, which is unexpected due to the generally lower socioeconomic status among Hispanics compared to non-Hispanic Whites. Likewise, the “Hispanic immigrant paradox” refers to more favorable health outcomes among immigrant Hispanics relative to US-born Hispanics. These paradoxes have been observed for a number of cancer sites, across the cancer continuum, from incidence to mortality. This presentation will highlight evidence of the Hispanic and Hispanic immigrant paradox, specifically observed for breast, prostate, lung, and cervical cancer survival, and for breast cancer risk. By considering neighborhood context, specifically residence in an ethnic enclave, insights can be gleaned for whether the health advantage among Hispanic immigrants might be most attributable to individual's health behaviors and exposures, contextual-level influences like social and built environments or co-ethnic social networks and support, or a synergistic effect of these factors. Methodological considerations, such as differential loss to follow-up and survival bias, will be explored. Citation Format: Scarlett Lin Gomez. Multilevel studies for better understanding the Hispanic immigrant paradox across the cancer continuum. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Ninth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2016 Sep 25-28; Fort Lauderdale, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2017;26(2 Suppl):Abstract nr IA13.