Follow our progress and find guidance and resources to support your own QI efforts toward improving disparities in care. Check back for periodic updates.
The Problem
276,480
women were diagnosed
with breast cancer in 2020
42,000
may die from the disease.
In Chicago, African American women
are dying at a rate
40%
faster than
non-Hispanic white women.
The Action
The University of Chicago Medicine and Ingalls Memorial Hospital are embarking on a quality improvement (QI) program to explore how strategies applied at a local level can address disparities in care. The project, led by renowned faculty Olufunmilayo Olopade, MD, FACP, is studying the effectiveness of targeted interventions in improving various facets of breast cancer care for African American women treated in Cook County.
The University of Chicago is at the forefront of medicine and we are going to be at the forefront of innovative solutions that promote health equity through solidarity.
- Olufunmilayo Olopade MD, FACP, Director, Center for Clinical Cancer Genetics & Global Health
Our Progress
The Contributors
Aminah Abdullah
Senior Director, Community Relations
Academy for Continued Healthcare Learning
Breast Cancer Advocate
Chicago, IL
Brenda Battle, MBA, BSN, RN
SVP Community Health Transformation
University of Chicago Medical Center
Chicago, IL
Mahira Zec Bonomo, MBA, CHCP
Executive Director, Center for Continuing Medical Education
The University of Chicago Biological Sciences & The Pritzker School of Medicine
Chicago, IL
Nan Chen, MD
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Section of Hematology / Oncology
The University of Chicago
Chicago, IL
Pamela Ganschow, MD
Director, Cancer Prevention and Survivorship Clinical Programs
Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine
University of Illinois Cancer Center
Chicago, IL
Amanda Kaczerski, MS, CHCP
Sr. Vice President, Education Strategy & Development
Academy for Continued Healthcare Learning
Chicago, IL
Olufunmilayo Olopade, MD, FACP
Walter L. Palmer Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine and Human Genetics
Director, Center for Clinical Cancer Genetics and Global Health
UChicago Medicine
Chicago, IL
John H. Stewart, IV, MD, MBA, FACS
Professor of Surgery
Louisiana State University School of Medicine
Center Director
LSU Health New Orleans/LCMC Health Cancer Center
New Orleans, LA
*Former Associate Director for Clinical Research at University of Illinois Cancer Center
Monica Peek, MD, MPH, MSc
Associate Professor of Medicine, General Internal Medicine
Associate Director, Chicago Center for Diabetes Translation Research
The University of Chicago
Chicago, IL
Patient Advocates
Alicia Cook
Patient Advocate
Candace Henley
Chief Surviving Officer
The Blue Hat Foundation, Inc.
Joanne Glenn
Founder & C.E.O. WOT Foundation, Inc.
Women on Top of their Game, Inc.
Resources
- A perfect storm. A review article by Drs. Daly and Olopade on interventions to close disparity gaps.
- Analysis of progress and breast cancer mortality disparities in Chicago.
- Editorial on factors contributing to global disparities in breast cancer outcomes.
- Racial disparities at the University of Chicago Comprehensive Cancer Center.
We thank the IME departments at Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca for their generous support of this QI program and their tireless commitment to improving healthcare access and outcomes, for everyone everywhere.
And to the University of Chicago Comprehensive Cancer Center, the University of Chicago Center for Continuing Medical Education, University of Illinois Chicago Cancer Center and their Chicago Cancer Screening and Testing Access Coalition (CCSTAC), and the Academy for Continued Healthcare Learning (ACHL), thank you for this impactful collaboration.