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 Image of the inactive Agua volcano, cobblestone streets, and colonial houses in Antigua Guatemala on a sunny day

 

The Central America Four region (CA-4) is comprised of Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and El Salvador. The CA-4 represents the core LMIC region in the western hemisphere (population 45M) and is linked to a large U.S. immigrant population. Research, education, and clinical initiatives in Latino health are established in the region related to cancer epidemiology and prevention, cancer control, and broader global health projects.

The infection-associated cancers dominate, including gastric, cervical, and hepatocellular. The core research focus is gastric cancer with programs related to host-microbe genetics, nutrition, and environmental factors. The Western Honduras Gastric Cancer Initiative serves as a platform of collaborations in the CA-4 region and Latin America focused on cancer prevention and control.

Leading UAB Faculty for Central America Initiatives

Doug Morgan, M.D.. MPH

Jill Neely, M.D.

Dalton Norwood, M.D.

Isabel Scarinci, Ph.D.

Jorge De La Torre, M.D., MSHA

Tatiana Torres, Ph.D.

Majd Zayzafoon, M.D., Ph.D.

Partners

ASAPRECAN, El Salvador (Lisseth Ruiz de Campo, M.D.)

Institute of Nutrition of Central American and Panama (Guatemala; Manuel Ramirez, M.D.)

Ministerio de Salud, El Salvador 

Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (Alfredo Riquelme, M.D.)

Secretaria de Salud, Honduras (Ricardo Dominguez, M.D.) 

Universidad de Puerto Rico (Marcia Cruz-Correa, M.D., Ph.D.)

Universidad del Valle (Colombia; Luis Eduardo Bravo, M.D.)

Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nicaragua (Javier Pastora, M.D.)