If I had to choose one of the leading causes of death in the country it would be cancer. In 2016, cancer had the second-largest death toll, killing 598,038 people (Zuber, 2019). One of the health disparities being the leading cause of death is that breast cancer tends to affect more black women at a faster rate than it does white women ('Cancer Disparities', 2018). Another health disparity that is the leading cause of death is that individuals with low incomes have a higher chance of dying from cancer than individuals with higher incomes ('Health Disparities in Cancer', 2018).
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The two social determinants of health that contribute factors on why people with low incomes have a greater risk of dying from cancer than people of a higher pay grade are the social gradient and stress. The social gradient is a contributing factor to this health disparity because people with low incomes are not living in the best environment and they may not have a good support system. People with low incomes are most likely brought up where they had a poor education, poor working conditions, and social circumstances that wear down their bodies contributing to the being more at risk for illnesses such as cancer (Wilkinson & Marmot, 2003).
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Another social determinant of health that contributes to why people with low incomes are at high risk for cancer than higher-paid people is stress. Lower-income people usually go through a lot of stress because of their economic and social situations, so they get involved in risky behaviors because of stress. Stress also raises a person's heart rate and makes people feel that they have no control over their lives. Stress from not having a steady job can make you physically and emotionally ill and can contribute to cancer and death (Wilkinson & Marmot, 2003).
A health policy solution that can aim to reduce the risk of death from cancer would be more affordable schools built to provide more skills for better-paying jobs. This will also relieve stress and people will have money to get the treatments they need for cancer because they will have a higher-paying job after school. Another solution would be to create better jobs so that people will not have to break their backs doing hard labor, ruining their health.
References
- Cancer Disparities. (2018, March 29). Retrieved from https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/understanding/disparities
- Health Disparities in Cancer. (2018, July 05). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/healthdisparities/basic_info/challenges.htm
- Wilkinson, Richard, Marmot, Michael, & World Health Organization. Centre for Urban Health. (2003). The Solid Facts: Social Determinants of Health. Copenhagen: Centre for Urban Health, World Health Organization.
- Zuber, P. (2019). 0.4 Health Ethics [slide 7-8]. Retrieved from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte LBST 2214 Issues of Health and Quality of Life Canvas site: https://canvas.uncc.edu
- Zuber, P. (2019). 0.1 Measures and Health Disparities [Slide 8]. Retrieved from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte LBST 2214 Issues of Health and Quality of Life Canvas site: https://canvas.uncc.edu
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Social Determinants of Health Contributing to Cancer: Essay.
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