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Nuestros Testimonios: How Spanish Speaking Breast-Cancer Survivors Conceptualize Cancer (2022)

Dalia Magaña's Bobcat comics in English and Spanish

Principal Investigator: 

  • Dalia Magaña 

Graduate Fellow Team Members:  

  • Lorraine Ramos 
  • Joshua Semerjian 
  • Ekta Kandhway 
  • Destina Bermejo 

Community Partner: 

  • Healthy House Merced 

Project Summary: 

Our project delved into the personal stories of Latina breast cancer survivors in Merced County, a medically underserved area. We aimed to understand how their cultural beliefs and metaphors influenced their coping mechanisms. Throughout the grant period, we made significant strides in achieving our research aims and addressing the unique challenges faced by this community. A partnership between Healthy House and UC Merced aimed to bridge the gap between academic research and community engagement. The project made substantial progress in identifying conceptual metaphors within the narratives of breast cancer survivors. Our findings shed light on the prevalence of journey, religion, and emotion metaphors, offering a nuanced understanding of how spirituality and community support play crucial roles in their experiences. Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, we successfully navigated these obstacles. Additionally, limitations in sample size prompted us to expand our data to include video testimonies shared on social media. 

Project Outcomes: 

  • UC Merced and Healthy House team members successfully built a mutually beneficial relationship to understand the breast cancer experiences of rural Latinas. 
  • We transcribed, translated, and coded 20 video testimonies, uncovering 451 conceptual metaphors associated with breast cancer experiences. 
  • The project's impact extended beyond research, highlighting the urgent need for breast cancer support groups in Merced and Planada. 

Comics: 

  • Magaña, Dalia and Matteo Farinella. Not a Cancer “Fight”: Centering Latinas’ Metaphors in Breast Cancer Narratives. Bobcat Comics, 2023. (funded by the Center for the Humanities at UC Merced)
  • Magaña, Dalia and Matteo Farinella. No Es una Lucha Contra el Cáncer: Las Metáforas de las Latinas en sus Narrativas del Cáncer de Seno. Bobcat Comics, 2023. (funded by the Center for the Humanities at UC Merced)

Publications: 

  • Magaña, Dalia, *Lorraine Ramos, & *Ekta Kandhway. “Not a cancer “fight”: Centering Latinas’ metaphors in breast cancer narratives.” Maldito Cáncer: Testimonios by Latinxs of Solidarity, Love and Resilience During Cancer Journeys, edited by Natalia Deeb-Sossa, Yvette Flores & Rita Urquijo-Ruiz. (accepted)
  • Magaña, Dalia. "Language in Cancer Discourse." Reference Module in Social Sciences, Elsevier, 2024. 
  • Magaña, Dalia, Christina Lux, and Ignacio López-Calvo. “Cultural Humility, Healthcare Equity, and Medical Humanities.” Medical Humanities, Cultural Humility, and Social Justice, edited by Dalia Magaña, Christina Lux, and Ignacio López-Calvo. University of California Health Humanities Press, 2023. 

Presentations:  

  • Magaña, Dalia, Candice Adam-Medefind, and Belle Ballador, “Language Shaping Healing: Centering the Wisdom of Latina Cancer Survivors.” Todo Cambia Festival, University of California, Merced, March 4, 2024. 
  • Magaña, Dalia, Candice Adam-Medefind, and Belle Ballador, “Not a Cancer “Fight”: Centering Latinas’ Metaphors in Breast Cancer Narratives Through Community Collaboration.” UCOP California Breast Cancer Research Program, March 1, 2024.  
  • Magaña, Dalia, Lorraine Ramos, Ekta Kandhway, Joshua Semerjian, Candice Adam-Medefind and Belle Vallador. “Not a Cancer “Fight”: Centering Latinas’ Metaphors in Breast Cancer Narratives Through Community Collaboration.” UC Merced Research Week, Multicultural Arts Center, Merced, March 9, 2023. 
  • Magaña, Dalia, Lorraine Ramos, Ekta Kandhway, and Joshua Semerjian, “Luce Workshop: Community Engaged Humanities Research.” UC Merced, October 18, 2022.