Arif Kamal, Chief Patient Officer of American Cancer Society and President of American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“I grew up in a small, rural Missouri town of 15,000.
The challenges of accessing cancer care in rural areas has been deeply personal since my mom’s breast cancer diagnosis, and is now a professional passion in my leadership role at American Cancer Society.
At least 30% of America’s 330 million people must travel at least 120 miles to access comprehensive cancer care. And with the bevy of lab draws, scans, infusions, and clinical visits we put on people’s plates, the logistical barriers of travel, lodging, and navigation across geographies can be overwhelming.
My good friend Dr. Rob Winn coined the term ‘ZNA‘. Akin to ‘DNA‘, he contrasts the predictive ability of someone’s residential location to the biology of their disease with regards to cancer outcomes. In fact, backyard trumps biology – and to the tune of higher mortality, regardless of tumor or stage.
Care that is not accessible represents a major unfulfilled promise of healthcare advancement.”
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