Abstract 11: Barriers and Facilitators to Implementation of Hospital-Based Pediatric Cancer Registries in Resource-Limited Settings
Authors: Collins James , Muir Michele , Yang Allison , Maas Melissa , Canter Courtney , Bhakta Nickhill , Johnson Kim , Muluneh Benyam 
Published: June 2023

Purpose: Cancer is a leading cause of global childhood mortality from noncommunicable diseases. While many cancer types are curable with current treatment regimens, the 90% of children and adolescents diagnosed with cancer in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have limited access to these treatments and markedly lower survival rates. Hospital based cancer registries (HBCRs) are essential to understanding improvements in treatment through the collection of patient information that allows for assessment of the impact of quality improvement. The St. Jude Global Childhood Cancer Analytics Resource and Epidemiological Surveillance System (SJCARES) is a standardized, cloud-based tool kit that was designed to assist LMICs with data collection on childhood cancer diagnoses and outcomes. Based on our observations of wide variation in the speed and success of HBCR implementation at participating LMIC sites during the first year, our aim is to investigate the barriers and facilitators to successful HBCR implementation.

Methods: Eight of 89 participating SJCARES registry sites were randomly selected within region and implementation stage representation. Webinars were conducted to inform and recruit HBCR study participant teams. An adapted interview guide for LMICs was created utilizing the Consolidation Framework for Implementation Research. Forty-five minute semi-structured Zoom interviews with study participant teams from these 8 sites were conducted to evaluate barriers and facilitators for HBCR implementation. Transcripts will be thematically coded using rapid qualitative analysis.

Results: Of the 8 participating sites, 1 is in the administrative, 2 are in the piloting, and 5 are in the production phases. Sixteen members from study participant teams (9 clinicians, 4 administrators, and 3 data clerks) from these sites were interviewed to identify barriers and facilitators associated with successful HBCR implementation. Rapid qualitative analysis of the interview transcripts to identify themes will be completed by February 2023.

Conclusions: This study will elucidate modifiable barriers and facilitators impacting the SJCARES Registry implementation in LMICs. Findings will help identify strategies to support successful and sustainable HBCRs in LMICs. Thus, this study will support equity among LMICs to promote widespread adoption of sustainable HBCRs and grow the infrastructure required to improve and sustain access to quality therapies and supportive care.

Citation Format: James Collins, Michele Muir, Allison Yang, Melissa Maas, Courtney Canter, Nickhill Bhakta, Kim Johnson, Benyam Muluneh. Barriers and Facilitators to Implementation of Hospital-Based Pediatric Cancer Registries in Resource-Limited Settings [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 11th Annual Symposium on Global Cancer Research; Closing the Research-to-Implementation Gap; 2023 Apr 4-6. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2023;32(6_Suppl):Abstract nr 11.