title: Identifying barriers to colonoscopy screening for nonadherent African American participants in a patient navigation intervention.
abstract: African Americans have a higher rate of colorectal cancer (CRC) mortality than other racial/ethnic groups. This disparity is alarming given that CRC is largely preventable through the use of endoscopy (screening colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy), yet rates of CRC screening among African Americans is suboptimal. Only 48.9% of African Americans are screened for CRC through endoscopy or fecal occult blood testing. As such, researchers have focused their efforts on the prevention of CRC through patient navigation (PN) services for colonoscopy screening. Although PN has been successful in increasing colonoscopy screening rates, screening rates of navigated participants could still be improved. Thus, the purpose of this exploratory study was to understand why patients, who received PN services, did not complete a colonoscopy. Sixteen participants were interviewed to identify salient themes related to noncompletion of the colonoscopy procedure. Major themes identified included the following: a lack of knowledge about CRC; fear/anxiety about the procedure, including unknown expectations, fear of pain, and fear of cancer diagnosis; inadequate physician communication about CRC and the colonoscopy exam; and believing that cancer leads to death. Participants felt that greater communication and explanation from their physician might help allay their fears. Our findings also suggest that a universal approach to PN, even within culturally targeted interventions, may not be appropriate for all individuals. Future interventions should consider gender-specific navigation and combining PN with nonmedical interventions to address other identified barriers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncological Sciences, Cancer Prevention and Control Division, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY 10029, USA. jamilia.sly@mssm.edu
authors.forename: Jamilia R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Sly
authors.forename: Tiffany
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.forename: Rachel C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Shelton
authors.forename: Lina
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jandorf
mesh_terms: D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology; D003113:Colonoscopy / Q000523:psychology*; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000517:prevention & control; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice / Q000208:ethnology*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D062526:Patient Navigation; D036301:Qualitative Research; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: African American; cancer prevention and screening; health disparities; patient navigation; qualitative methods; race/ethnicity