The passing of funk/R&b spiritualist D’Angelo after his quiet battle with pancreatic cancer has shone a light on how gastrointestinal disease continues to plague Black men writ large.
D’Angelo is the latest in a famous trio, along with Chadwick Boseman and Richard Roundtree, to have succumbed to GI-related illness in the past half-decade.
There are, of course, many differences among the three figures: Boseman was the youngest to pass, at 43, from colon cancer; Roundtree first battled breast cancer before his pancreatic diagnosis; and little is known about D’Angelo’s condition.
Yet, with these examples and taking a gander at the statistics regarding Black men’s colon and gastrointestinal health, it’s clear that we must do everything possible to even have a chance at outpacing this disease.
African Americans have the lowest survivability rates, about 19% lower than their White male counterparts, when it comes to most cancers, and that trend extends to Black men with GI cancers.
For colon cancer, the five-year mortality rate is 37% higher in Black men compared to the total male population. For pancreatic cancer, Black men’s mortality rate is staggeringly 1.17 times higher than that of any other ethnic group.
What these statistics highlight isn’t some biological predisposition but rather a range of social and financial barriers to treatment. These obstacles include everything from later-stage diagnosis to systemic issues such as institutional bias in how patients are followed up or treated.
Though overcoming those disparities doesn’t guarantee survival, early screenings and treatments significantly improve the chances of full recovery and longer life.
If insurance isn’t an option, there are a number of alternatives and programs available. Consider a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), which offers sliding-scale or free services depending on income.
Looking into specific clinics, nonprofits like the American Cancer Society, or using a FIT (fecal immunochemical test) can also help when seeing a primary care physician is too costly.
We can’t outrun the grave, but, in addition to healthy choices about substances and diet, we can do our best to make sure that we live fuller, longer lives, even in a world that seeks to end us early.
