Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos : Building Collaboration for Action

Over the past 30 years, Dr. Ramirez has directed over 100 research programs focused on human and organizational communication to reduce chronic disease and cancer health disparities affecting Latinos and other minority and underserved populations, including cancer risk factors, clinical trial recruitment, patient navigation, tobacco prevention, obesity prevention, and more. Dr. Ramirez directs two national research networks, one funded by the National Cancer Institute targeting Latino cancer (Redes En Acción, redesenaccion.com)and one funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation promoting health equity through community change for Latino health equity (Salud America!, salud-america.org/; @SaludAmerica on social media). Salud America! has a network of more than 300,000 community leaders, school personnel, parents, and healthcare professionals and researchers who are fueled with educational content and tools to advocate for equitable changes in policies, systems, and environments in Latino communities. Salud America!’s core network members have produced 179 Latino childhood health policy wins (something passed by a relevant voting body), according to a 2018 evaluation report. Dr. Ramirez also has led studies using the latest mobile technologies―mobile phone apps, text messaging programs, and social media innovations, etc.―to improve health behaviors among Latinos, covering issues from smoking cessation to breast cancer treatment adherence.

Dr. Ramirez also understands the great need for mentorship programs and diversity in the research field. She has personally trained and/or mentored over 300 Latino undergraduate and pre- and post-doctoral students, as well as early-career faculty members, instructing about research design, methods, data analysis, and career development. Many of her trainees have achieved high profile and broad-reaching independent success, including K01 awards. She also directs Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training, an NCI-funded project to train and encourage Latino master’s-level students and professionals to pursue a doctoral degree and cancer research career. Of 175 Éxito! grads since 2011, more than 35% have applied to doctoral programs and more than 20% are now enrolled in a doctoral program (or have graduated). Dr. Ramirez also united over 225 Latino cancer disparities researchers for the first-ever “Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos” conference in February 2018 to focus specifically on cancer health disparities among Latino communities, as well as a second “Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos” conference in February 2020. 

Dr. Ramirez has authored many peer-reviewed articles, is an editorial board member on several prestigious journals, including Health Education Research, and is frequently invited to speak at scientific meetings. She has been recognized for her work to improve Latino health and advance Latinos in medicine, public health, and behavioral sciences across the U.S., including: 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Behavioral Medicine; 2018 CentroMed Icons in Healthcare Award; 2014 Everett M. Rogers Public Health Communication Award from APHA; 2014 Making a Difference Award from Latinas Contra Cancer; 2011 White House “Champion of Change”; 2009 Health Care Hero from the San Antonio Business Journal; 2007 election to the National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine); and 2007 Professor of Survivorship from Susan G. Komen For the Cure. She also is a 2018 Susan G. Komen Scholar and a member of the National Advisory Council on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NACMHD) of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD). In Texas, Dr. Ramirez is on the San Antonio Mayor’s Fitness Council and is Board President of The Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science of Texas. Dr. Ramirez is a native of Laredo, Texas. She received a B.S. from The University of Houston and M.P.H. and Dr.P.H. degrees from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health.

Edward J Trapido, ScD, FACE, is Professor and Wendell Gauthier Chair for Cancer Epidemiology at the LSU School of Public Health and the Stanly S. Scott Cancer Center (SSSCC), where he leads initiatives in cancer control and etiologic research. He directs the Louisiana Cancer Research Consortium (LCRC) Population Sciences research program, a joint initiative involving the SSSCC, the Tulane Cancer Center, and Xavier University. Dr. Trapido also serves as the Deputy Director for the Stanley S. Scott Cancer Center.  Focused on strengthening interdepartmental research at the LSU Health Sciences Center, Dr. Trapido serves as senior advisor to the deans of school of public health and of medicine. Prior to joining LSU, he was Professor and Acting Division Director for the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Miami School of Medicine, where he also directed the doctoral program in Epidemiology, the HIV-AIDS Surveillance Program, and the Global Research and Evaluation Center. His leadership experience includes appointments at the NCI as Deputy Director for International Cancer Control in the Office of International Affairs and as Associate Director of the Epidemiology and Genetics Research Program within the Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences. In addition, he has co-chaired of the Trans-NIH Tobacco and Nicotine Research Interest Group and served as Senior Advisor to the Director of the International Agency for Research, in Lyon, France. He has been a member of the steering committee for the 2006 NIH State-of-the-Science Statement on Tobacco Use: Prevention, Cessation and Control, which was part of the NIH Consensus Development Program and of the National Academy of Sciences/Institute of Medicine Committee on Secondhand Smoke Exposure and Acute Coronary Events. His degrees include a Master’s in parasitology from the University of North Carolina, and both a Master's and Doctor of Science in Epidemiology from Harvard. Prior to joining the faculty at the University of Miami, Dr. Trapido was a staff fellow in the Division of Cancer Etiology at the NCI and, before that, as instructor in environmental health and community medicine at New York's Downstate Medical Center. His primary areas of research interest are tobacco prevention, cancer prevention and control, especially in minority and underserved populations, and program evaluation.