Abstract B20: Cancer screening in rural Honduras: Maximizing impact with a multiorgan screening approach
Authors: Kennedy Linda Skewes , Marra Kayla A. , LaRochelle Ethan Phillip Marshall , Chamberlin Mary D. , Lyons Kathleen D. , Bejarano Suyapa A. , Tsongalis Gregory J. 
Published: February 2019

Introduction: Poverty, poor health infrastructure, and rurality contribute to lack of cancer screening for most residents of Honduras (HN). We hypothesized that if community-identified barriers were mitigated, rural Hondurans would participate in cancer screening; initial low-tech screening methods would be useful in identifying high-risk individuals in a large group; and that we could operationalize an acceptable and effective multiorgan screening program. Our objective was to test multiorgan cancer-screening strategies for challenging rural environments such as our site in rural El Rosario, Honduras and develop a strategy that would be generalizable to rural sites in other low-income countries.

Methods: We conducted three cancer-screening projects (2013/n=449 women, 2016/n=389 women, 2017/n=299 men) by developing relationships with rural community leaders and Honduran oncologists. Together, we launched multiorgan screening events via a brigade-style medical outreach model designed to mitigate barriers to early detection of cancers. Key strategies: 1) a screening cascade system and low-tech methods to identify high-risk individuals for further screening; 2) triage for findings requiring additional workup, rather than focusing on making a definitive cancer diagnosis; 3) inserting cancer education into the participants' experience; and 4) multiorgan screening to maximize cancer prevention with little additional use of resources. Community-identified barriers were transportation, cost, fear, and inconvenience; we negotiated an array of minimalist and highly effective community-based strategies to mitigate the barriers. In 2013 and 2016 we screened women for cancers including cervix, breast, oropharynx, and thyroid, and in 2017 screened men for testicular, oropharynx, skin, prostate, and colon cancers. Post-study, participants with suspicious findings were connected with follow-up care at a cancer center in HN. On-site screening methods ranged from no-tech, including surveys, clinical breast exams, throat palpation for thyroid, digital rectal exam for prostate, physical exam of testes, and visual skin inspection for skin cancer; to mid-tech, including telepathology for oral cancer, fecal occult blood test for colon cancer, and PSA for prostate; and high-tech PCR screening for high-risk HPV (hrHPV). Well-trained HN medical students staffed the screening areas; their participation is intended to increase long-term screening capacity in HN. Community leaders were responsible for promoting the screening clinic by training teens who traveled to villages to introduce the opportunity.

Results: Participants came via a free bus, horse, motorbike, and on foot from 31 (2013), 40 (2016), and 38 (2017) different communities. Median age and years of education were 38/5 (2013), 40/6 (2016), and 47/4 (2017). Almost every participant completed all screenings. We found 11 types of hrHPV; in 2013/8.4% and 2016/12.5% were positive for 1 or more types. Referrals for breast follow-up were 2013/2.7% and 2016/4.4%. In 2017 (men), 26 referrals were: skin screening/2; testicular exams/2; colon/2; oropharynx/0; and 20 men for clinical prostate follow-up by a screening cascade of survey, digital rectal exam, and PSA. 249 men self-identified based on ASCO colon standards and brought stool samples for FOBT/4 tested positive. We used oral consent and focus groups for post-event evaluation. Comments reflected satisfaction with the medical students, convenience of a free bus, and protection of participants' privacy.

Conclusion: With community engagement and attention to planning for organized and rapid throughput, large-scale multiorgan cancer screening is feasible in low-income rural communities. Despite low expectation of male participation because it is “common knowledge” that Honduran males avoid clinics, our experience demonstrates that with mitigation of barriers, men will participate.

Citation Format: Linda Skewes Kennedy, Kayla A. Marra, Ethan Phillip Marshall LaRochelle, Mary D. Chamberlin, Kathleen D. Lyons, Suyapa A. Bejarano, Gregory J. Tsongalis. Cancer screening in rural Honduras: Maximizing impact with a multiorgan screening approach [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Tenth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2017 Sep 25-28; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2018;27(7 Suppl):Abstract nr B20.