Abstract P1-08-09: DIVAS - DC Pink Divas Intervening Virtually to Advance Saving Lives: Assessing the impact of digital behavioral health breast cancer education program for Black women
Authors: Zuend Falasha , Thompson Shyrea , Wilson Lori 
Published: March 2023

Breast cancer is now the most common cancer. Thirty years of increased awareness, early diagnosis, and treatment access contributed to a 40% decline in breast cancer deaths. Yet, in 2021, more than 281,550 new cases of invasive and 49,290 new cases of non-invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in U.S. women. Black women are 40% more likely to die of breast cancer - the highest breast cancer death rate across racial and ethnic groups. Today, the Black-white breast cancer mortality gap persists, and Black metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients have a poorer prognosis. The pandemic exacerbated breast cancer disparities. In 2020, delays and avoidance contributed to an 85% breast cancer screening drop while MBC patients’ risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 elevated. Therapy interruptions and abandonment increased, and conversely, clinical trial enrollment decreased. COVID-19 has accelerated the digital platform shift to telemedicine, online psychosocial support programs, virtual patient navigation, and digital engagement across the oncology care continuum. DC Pink Divas Intervening Virtually to Advance Saving Lives (DIVAS) is an award-winning evidence-based training, outreach, and patient navigation program developed to address the educational needs of Black early-stage, MBC breast cancer patients, survivors, and caretakers and provide strategies to educate, empower and impact women by increasing breast health knowledge, decreasing gaps in screenings and access, increasing awareness of MBC to ensure that where a woman lives, will not determine if she lives through a 1-year commitment of attendance in 8 cohort-based education modules where Black breast cancer mortality is highest. The DIVAS Health Behavioral Change Model adapts the Precaution Adoption Process Model, Health Behavior Model, and Social-Ecological Model. DIVAS implements innovative virtual outreach programs, training, and intervention strategies to empower Advocates to educate peers, providers, and policymakers. 3 Cohorts of Black women impacted by breast cancer trained as Lay Breast Health Advocates from 2011, 2020, and 2021 (N = 57; 77.5 % 45 years or younger; 36.7% early-stage 0-II, 50% late stage III-IV, 10.3% caretakers) self-reported their lifestyle behaviors, breast cancer diagnosis, breast health education, social media use, and interest in a digital-based lifestyle intervention. Participants completed pre-and post-surveys, interviews, and journaling over 10.5+ hours of education modules to understand their breast health, provider-related challenges, and community-related resources. Findings provide evidence that cohort-tailored education is a successful method of supporting Black women in a behavioral-health intervention. The provision of printed culturally attuned information along with the digital-based instruction from a Black woman health care provider or public health expert is effective in helping Black breast cancer survivors transition into patient empowerment, improve QOL and contribute to better patient outcomes. After the intervention and completion of breast health modules, participants reported increased: self-efficacy in communicating with providers (70%) and self-efficacy in making treatment decisions (70%) self-confidence (85%), and a decrease in lifestyle risk factors (87%). Patient-centric behavioral health interventions in breast cancer education must be advanced digitally to address the pandemic’s compounded crisis. DC Pink Divas provides insights to combat rising disparities by educating, empowering, and mobilizing Black lay breast health advocates to improve outcomes. Collaborative digital interventions across the care continuum to improve awareness, access, adherence, infrastructure, culturally attuned training, and support are evidence-based methods for navigating the cancer care transformation accelerated by COVID-19 to advance breast health equity.

DIVAS Logic Model 2011- 2022

Logic model demonstrating inputs, activities, outputs and short and long term outcomes

2020- 2021 Cohort Sentiments and Behaviors

Cohort outcomes from DC Pink Divas

DIVAS In-Person vs Virtual Training

Lay Breast Health Advocates recorded outcomes from cohorts 2011, 2020, and 2021

Citation Format: Falasha Zuend, Shyrea Thompson, Lori Wilson. DIVAS - DC Pink Divas Intervening Virtually to Advance Saving Lives: Assessing the impact of digital behavioral health breast cancer education program for Black women [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2022 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2022 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(5 Suppl):Abstract nr P1-08-09.