Francine C. Gachupin, PhD, MPH, passes away

Francine C. Gachupin, PhD, MPH, passed away on Sept. 23, 2024, from an aggressive neuroendocrine cancer. After undergoing numerous treatments and procedures, she returned to her home in New Mexico to spend her final days with her family and friends.

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Gachupin devoted her life to improving the health and well-being of Native American communities, with a particular focus on youth and families at high risk for diabetes. She also worked tirelessly to reduce health care disparities, especially in cancer prevention.

Gachupin joined the Family and Community Medicine department in the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson in 2012 as an assistant professor. She was promoted to professor in 2023. She had joint appointments in the Department of Psychology and in the American Indian Studies Graduate Inter-Disciplinary Program in the College of Social & Behavioral Science as well as in American Indian Studies in the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health.

Gachupin earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology and criminal justice from the University of New Mexico. As a Sloan Fellow at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas, Austin, she expanded her knowledge and leadership skills. She went on to earn a Master of Arts in anthropology from the University of New Mexico, followed by a Master of Public Health in epidemiology from the University of Washington. She earned her doctorate in anthropology from the University of New Mexico.

Gachupin is perhaps best known for her American Indian Youth Wellness Camp. This camp was established for America Indian youth at high risk for diabetes. When the COVID-19 pandemic made in-person gatherings impossible, Gachupin adapted the program into a "Camp in a Box" model, ensuring that youth and their families could still participate and benefit remotely.

She is also well known for her work in Native American cancer prevention and health disparities, and worked with the Partnership for Native American Cancer Prevention — a collaboration between Northern Arizona University and the University of Arizona Cancer Center. Through her work with NACP, Gachupin was focused on alleviating the unequal burden of cancer among Native Americans of the Southwest through research, training and community outreach.

She served on numerous local and national boards and committees, too many to name. Last year, she was honored with an invitation to deliver the keynote address for the National Institutes of Health's "Summer Internship on Health Disparities in Tribal Communities."

Before her passing, she was awarded an NIH grant, “A School Based Partnership with Rural Tribal Schools for Primary Prevention of Obesity Among American Indian Youth,” that will go until 2029. As part of a collaborative effort, she also received a National Cancer Institute grant, "Partnership for Native American Cancer Prevention," that will also continue until 2029.