Omar M. Abdel-Rahman Abdelsalam, MBBCh, MSc, MD, Assistant Professor of Medical Oncology from the University of Alberta discusses the New Research in JNCCN Highlights Dangerous Disparities for Life-Saving Cancer Screening.
PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., Jan. 13, 2021 /PRNewswire/ " New research in the January 2021 issue of the JNCCN-National Comprehensive Cancer Network Journal shows that more than a third of qualifying individuals skip timely colorectal cancer screening tests and at least a fifth tend to miss timely breast and cervical cancer screening tests. The research comes from the University of Alberta, Faculty of Medicine, and Dentistry in Alberta, Canada, with findings from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) from 2007-2016 based on self-reported results. The findings also point to evidence that screening differences are related to lower socioeconomic status and identifiable minority race, according to the author, echoing a similar study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control in the United States.
Dr. Abdel-Rahman looked at self-reported results, based on Canadian guidelines from 2007 to 2016, for 99,820 individuals eligible for colorectal cancer screening, 59,724 individuals eligible for breast cancer screening, and 46,767 in the cervical cancer screening cohort. 43% did not have a timely colorectal screening test, 35% did not have a timely mammogram, and 25% did not have a timely PAP smear. Based on self-reporting throughout the sample, there were small improvements in screening enforcement over the period of the study.
No effect from the COVID-19 pandemic is included in the research results. The publication, however, is especially timely as doctors focus on drop-offs in screening rates, which are expected to lead to thousands of excess cancer deaths over the next 10 years. In addition, the report illustrates how economic and ethnic inequalities lead to unequal health outcomes and shows the need for solutions that go beyond health care coverage alone.
Visit JNCCN.org to read the entire report. Until April 10, 2021, free access to “Patterns and Trend of Cancer Screening in Canada; Results from a Contemporary National Survey” is open.