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Knowledge Is Power

Michael Hall, MD; Olufunmilayo I. Olopade, MBBS

JAMA. 2005;293:1783-1785.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

In 1597, when philosopher Francis Bacon first composed the phrase Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est, "For knowledge itself is power," he could never have imagined its current applicability to reducing disparities in cancer care and prevention in the United States. The landmark Institute of Medicine report Unequal Treatment: Understanding Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care¹ revealed that racial- and ethnic-minority patients receive inferior health care compared with white Americans, even when income and insurance inequalities are leveled. The promise of early cancer detection and prevention is within reach as newer technologies become incorporated into medical practice. Unfortunately, new technologies are likely to increase health care disparities even further as they widen the gap between those who already receive the best care and those who do not.

Specifically, the use of genetic counseling and testing for primary cancer prevention is yet another . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Author Affiliations: Departments of Medicine and Human Genetics, University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill.

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