Bringing Better Cancer Care Back Home

For Dr. Kekoa Taparra, cancer is deeply personal. Growing up in a remote area of Oahu, Hawaii, Dr. Taparra witnessed his younger cousin's struggles with neuroblastoma. He watched his mother lift and carry his aunt, too weak to walk because of breast cancer. He heard the sharp cries of another aunt suffering with endometrial cancer. These early experiences drove Dr. Taparra to not only dedicate his career to oncology and cancer research, but to focus on addressing the various inequities that face Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander (NHPI) communities—from low rates of inclusion in clinical trials to geographic barriers to cancer care.

In 2023, Dr. Taparra received the inaugural Dr. Judith and Alan Kaur Endowed Young Investigator Award through Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation. With this support, he launched a research project that uses machine learning to explore the various drivers of NHPI cancer disparities and helps categorize NHPI cancer data more effectively. He joins Your Stories host Dr. Don Dizon to share more about this important work and how his upbringing fueled his dedication to conquering cancer for every patient.