August 22, 2000
Vol. LII, No. 17

Morella, Peers
Briefed on Genome
Project Developments

Tabak Named
NIDCR Director

Synthetic Peptide Shows Promise as Antibiotic

Meyerhoff
Scholars Visit NIH

More Than 500
Screened for Skin Cancer

By Carla Garnett

Increasing use of food refrigeration, declining use of certain preservatives, and rising consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables may have led to a reduction in stomach cancer mortality in the United States. That is one of several conclusions epidemiologists have drawn based on studying cancer trends over the last half century, according to Dr. Susan Devesa, who discussed "Variations in Cancer Rates: The Influence of Age, Gender, Race, Time, and Space," during a recent summer lecture series on health disparities. The lectures are targeted each year to NIH's summer students through the Office of Education, NIH Office of Intramural Research. In her lecture, Devesa explained how epidemiologists use statistical data to help predict a nation's healthcare and medical research needs.
M O R E . . .

NIDDK Opens Office of Minority Health Research Coordination

By Jane DeMouy

NIDDK's newly appointed OMHRC director Dr. Larry Agodoa coordinates elements of the institute's strategic plan with Program Director Rose Pruitt (c) and Program Analyst Winnie Martinez.

When it comes to health and disease, national health surveys paint a bleak picture for racial and ethnic minorities: African Americans have 1.6 times the rate of diabetes as whites. Hispanic Americans have almost twice the rate of disease found in non-Hispanic whites. American Indians get diabetes three times as often.
M O R E . . .