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For many women, cervical cancer — while scary — is largely preventable, and if caught early, has a five-year survival rate of over 90%. Despite the usually favorable prognosis, an estimated 4,290 U.S. women died of cervical cancer in 2021. Black women, like Williams, are more likely to have a late-stage diagnosis of the disease and are almost one-and-a-half times more likely to die of cervical cancer than white women, according to a joint report by the Southern Rural Black Women's Initiative for Economic and Social Justice (SRBWI) and Human Rights Watch (HRW). The study, based in rural Georgia, found "glaring racial disparities" in cervical cancer deaths at a rate that only worsened with age. (Wise, 1/31)

If there’s one thing that tech companies, retailers, content creators and investors can agree on, it’s this: There’s plenty of money to be made from the metaverse. But as CEOs try to elbow past their rivals to gain a foothold in the still nascent digital space, some psychologists and mental health experts say the race to turn a profit is taking attention away from a crucial question: Will the metaverse be a safe place, especially for kids and teens? (Huddleston Jr., 1/31)

KHN: Colleges Struggle To Recruit Therapists For Students In Crisis 

Early in his first quarter at the University of California-Davis, Ryan Manriquez realized he needed help. A combination of pressures — avoiding covid-19, enduring a breakup, dealing with a disability, trying to keep up with a tough slate of classes — hit him hard. “I felt the impact right away,” said Manriquez, 21. After learning of UC-Davis’ free counseling services, Manriquez showed up at the student health center and lined up an emergency Zoom session the same day. He was referred to other resources within days and eventually settled into weekly group therapy. (Kreidler, 2/1)

Workers are quitting their jobs in record numbers – part of what is now called The Great Resignation. Around 4 million workers have quit each month between July and November 2021. Erica Leman had maintained a side hustle as a wedding photographer for 12 years. Like millions of other Americans, Leman, who was working in higher education, took the pandemic as a sign to make a career change. “We had one pandemic, what’s the chances of it happening again, during my lifetime?” Leman said. “The worst that could happen is that I go back to a job. That’s not the end of the world.” American workers who are becoming their own bosses may be gaining new financial freedom, but they’re losing a big advantage: health insurance benefits. More than 54% of Americans had insurance through their employer in 2020, according to U.S. Census data. (Morabito, 1/31)

KHN: ‘American Diagnosis’ Episode 2: Reclaiming Native Food Traditions To Nourish Indigenous People 

Reagan Wytsalucy was looking for a lost orchard. Martin Reinhardt wanted to know more about and better understand the taste of Indigenous foods before European colonization in North America. They followed different paths, but their goals were similar: to reclaim their food traditions to improve the health and vitality of their communities. Native foodways of hunting, fishing, gathering, and farming have been under threat since the arrival of Europeans. Colonization, forced relocations, and, later, highly processed foods fundamentally reshaped the diet of many Indigenous people. The effects of those changes have rippled through generations. Now, Indigenous people are twice as likely to have diabetes as white Americans, according to a 2017 CDC report. (2/1)