Barriers and Facilitators to Stool-Based Screening for Colorectal Cancer Among Black Louisville Residents

AbstractKnowledge of colorectal cancer (CRC) screening options remains suboptimal in Black populations, contributing to screening disparities. Guided by community-based participatory research (CBPR) principles, we partnered with five Black churches in Louisville, a region of Kentucky with high Black-white CRC screening disparities, to explore screening barriers and facilitators for CRC education and outreach. Project champions (n = 5) served as primary points of contact, developed project support within their churches, and were trained to recruit church and community members (n = 39) to participate in five semi-structured focus groups. Interview questions probed actual and perceived barriers to CRC screening, focusing on knowledge and perceptions of stool-based tests. Subsequent questions explored perceptions of different screening tests, CRC knowledge and beliefs, an d trusted community locations for screening outreach. Transcripts were analyzed iteratively, and codes were derived inductively and refined to develop overarching themes. Participants experienced multilevel barriers to completing CRC screening. Primary themes about CRC screening included acknowledgm ent of importance, positive and negative personal experiences, need for increased outreach, and desire for greater cultural representation in educational materials. Participants frequently discussed perceptions of inadequate medical care, with most having only ever been offered colonoscopy; subseque ntly, kno...
Source: Journal of Cancer Education - Category: Cancer & Oncology Source Type: research