Abstract B83: Acceptability of a rinse technique for diagnosing head and neck squamous cell carcinoma among African Americans.
Authors: Lechner Suzanne C. , Pereira Lutecia H. Mateus , Reategui Erika , Gordon Claudia , Studts Jamie , Byrne Margaret , Hooper Monica Webb , Lee David J. , Franzmann Elizabeth J. 
Published: August 2014

Background/Objective: Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a debilitating and deadly disease, particularly among African Americans. Cure rates increase from 30% to 80% if the disease is detected early. This study evaluated the acceptability of a non-invasive, easy to administer, very affordable, and innovative rinse technique that assays the soluble form of CD44 and total protein as HNSCC early detection markers in a sample of African American men and women. The aim of the study was to determine whether the rinse was acceptable and whether the outcome of the rinse was likely to promote screening behavior.

Methods: Participants (N=127) were from underserved, low-income (83% of sample reported annual income of less than $15,000), African American backgrounds (mean age = 51.24). Men (n=73) and women (n=53) were administered a questionnaire to capture satisfaction, intention to repeat the test, and whether the results of the test would affect screening behavior after using the rinse. Nearly 100% of the sample was currently smoking or using nicotine products. Descriptive statistics, t-tests and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were employed using SPSS 19 (IBM).

Results: Findings showed that using the rinse was highly acceptable to African American men and women (i.e., philosophy behind use, ease of rinse, willingness to repeat, perceived willingness of others in their social group to use rinse, all mean scores = strongly agree). With regard to the rinse's potential effects of behavior, mean scores indicate that participants strongly agreed that: (a) they would act on a positive cancer finding based on the rinse by scheduling an appointment for treatment, (b) they would perform the rinse as prescribed, (c) they would engage in preventative behaviors if the rinse indicated a high probability of getting HNC, (d) they would stop smoking if the rinse indicated a high probability of getting HNC, and (e) people who are at high risk of HNC should stop smoking.

Acceptability of the rinse and the rinse's potential effects on behavior did not differ between males and females (all p-values of t-tests &gt; .05) or based on educational attainment categories (all p-values of ANOVAs &gt; .05). Compared to currently unemployed participants, those who were employed reported that: the rinse was harder to do (t(1,124)=-2.37, p=.019); were more likely to schedule a treatment appointment based on the rinse's outcome (t(1,124)=3.54, p=.001); they were more likely to rinse as prescribed (t(1,124)=2.84, p=.003); and they were more likely to take action to prevent HNSCC based on the determination of the rinse (t(1,124)=3.04, p=.003). Interestingly, individuals with health care coverage reported that the test was harder to do (F(2, 123)=4.92, p=.009), but did not differ from uninsured participants on any other variables (all p-values of ANOVAs &gt; .05).

Discussion: Findings indicate that a simple, easy to use rinse technique is acceptable to patients and is highly likely to promote screening behavior among African Americans at risk for HNSCC. Differences were noted between insured versus uninsured participants, employed versus unemployed participants but no differences were observed between men and women and between groups based on educational attainment.

Citation Format: Suzanne C. Lechner, Lutecia H. Mateus Pereira, Erika Reategui, Claudia Gordon, Jamie Studts, Margaret Byrne, Monica Webb Hooper, David J. Lee, Elizabeth J. Franzmann. Acceptability of a rinse technique for diagnosing head and neck squamous cell carcinoma among African Americans. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fifth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2012 Oct 27-30; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2012;21(10 Suppl):Abstract nr B83.