As a family physician and cancer disparities researcher who leads the Baltimore City Cancer Program of the University of Maryland Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center, I’d like to encourage Black women to participate in the groundbreaking VOICES of Black Women study launched in May by the American Cancer Society. By participating in this study and sharing our voices, we can impact the health of Black women for future generations.

VOICES of Black Women is calling on Black women from all walks of life to enroll or participate as an ambassador to help spread the word and increase enrollment. This is not just a study. It is a collective commitment to understanding and improving the health of Black women across the nation by addressing disparities.

The impact of cancer in the Black community is startling. According to the American Cancer Society, Black individuals continue to have the highest death rate and shortest survival of any racial or ethnic group in the United States for most cancers. Black women are 41% more likely to die from breast cancer than white women. That statistic is especially striking because fewer Black women are diagnosed with breast cancer than white women. We need to change these outcomes and improve the health of Black women.

Many people in our society are still fighting for inclusive and equitable treatment, specifically when it comes to health. Not only as a physician, but also as a friend, relative and colleague, I have seen numerous Black women diagnosed with cancer and, painfully, many of those women lost their lives prematurely to cancer. For each of these amazing women who lost their lives — women who were central figures in their families and social and professional circles — their loss was and continues to be devastating. We must honor their stories and the stories of countless others lost by uplifting our voices to change the narrative of Black women and cancer to one of hope and life.

VOICES of Black Women is the largest behavioral and environmental focused study of cancer risk and outcomes among Black women in the United States. The study is a partnership between Black women and researchers to better understand the multi-level drivers of incidence, mortality and resilience of cancer and other health conditions among Black women. It is centered around the power of Black women’s voices and lived experiences to improve the overall health of generations to come. The goal is to enroll over 100,000 Black women who live in Washington, D.C. and 20 states including Maryland. Eligible participants must identify as Black, be assigned female at birth or self-identify as women, not have a history of cancer (except basal or squamous skin cancer) and be between ages 25 and 55.

As a family physician and a Black woman, I encourage every Black woman reading this to join us in this movement so that we can use our collective voices to change the future and leave a legacy. Our inclusion in research is a foundational component of finding the solutions we need. It is so important that our experiences as Black women inform and guide research so that answers for us come from us.

Answering the questions to join and participate in the VOICES of Black women study does not involve clinical testing, medication, lifestyle change or treatment of any kind. It’s simple, I’ve done it and I hope you will join me and other Black women across the country! Visit voices.cancer.org to learn more and enroll online via a laptop or mobile device. Our daughters, granddaughters, and others in the generations to come will thank us for it.

— Shana O. Ntiri, Baltimore