University of California San Francisco
Presentation Abstract
Food Insecurity and Cancer Care
A cancer diagnosis can upend work and family life, leading patients to reallocate resources away from essentials such as food. Estimates of the number of people navigating a cancer diagnosis and food insecurity range between 17 to 55%. The complexity of addressing food insecurity among those with cancer during different phases of treatment is multifactorial and requires a network of support throughout each phase. In this presentation, I will provide context around the landscape of both food and nutrition security in the United States. I will then examine the impact of food insecurity on cancer related outcomes, present a conceptual framework of food insecurity in cancer, explore current mitigation efforts, and offer recommendations for creating a path to address food insecurity in the context of cancer. I will focus on current impact and actionable recommendations to make programs such as these scalable and sustainable. All recommendations are grounded in the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine social care framework through five essential domain areas: Awareness, Adjustment, Assistance, Alignment and Advocacy. This presentation will seek to highlight opportunities for the optimization of cancer care and reframe food access as an essential part of treatment and long-term care plans.
About Dr. Seligman
Dr. Hilary Seligman, M.D., M.A.S. is a Professor at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) with appointments in the Departments of Medicine and of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. She directs the Food Policy, Health, and Hunger Research Program at UCSF’s Center for Vulnerable Populations at San Francisco General Hospital and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Nutrition and Obesity Policy Research and Evaluation Network. Dr. Seligman is also the Director of UCSF’s National Clinician Scholars Program, which aims to offer unparalleled training for clinicians as change agents driving policy-relevant research and partnerships to improve health and health care. Dr. Seligman is the Senior Medical Advisor for Feeding America and founded EatSF, a healthy food voucher program for low-income residents of San Francisco, now known as Vouchers for Veggies.
Dr. Seligman is a nationally-recognized expert in food insecurity, particularly its health implications across the life course. Her policy and advocacy expertise focus on federal nutrition programs (particularly SNAP), food banking and the charitable feeding network, hunger policy, food affordability and access, and income-related drivers of food choice.
Dr. Seligman disclosed the following conflicts of interest related to this workshop: salary support from approved grant funding to UCSF: Feeding America (non-profit organization) and the United States Department of Agriculture (Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program) and private foundation and individual donations to her own produce prescription program (EatSF/Vouchers for Veggies).