KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The study aimed to synthesize evidence globally and identify facilitators and barriers to lung cancer screening participation.
- The study highlighted barriers and facilitators to lung cancer screening, advocated AI methods to enhance uptake, and considered costs and impacts.
Targeted screening participation reduces lung cancer mortality by 30-60%, yet its availability lacks universality.
Teferi Gebru Gebremeskel and the team aimed to globally synthesize evidence and identify facilitators and barriers to lung cancer screening participation.
Following primary study screening using qualitative methods up to February 2023, 2 reviewers conducted a two-phase synthesis. They used a meta-study methodology to interpret lung cancer screening decisions grounded in primary studies.
The study involved a thematic analysis of group themes to identify specific facilitators and barriers, a systematic comparison of investigations for similarities and differences, and a meta-synthesis to develop an expanded theory of lung cancer screening participation. Utilizing the Social Ecological Model, researchers organized and interpreted themes across individual, interpersonal, social/cultural, and organizational/structural levels.
The results revealed that 52 articles met the final inclusion criteria. Themes facilitating lung cancer screening included prioritizing patient education, quality of communication, and quality of provider-initiated encounter/coordination of care at the individual patient and provider levels. At the interpersonal group level, the quality of the patient-provider relationship emerged as a facilitator. Additionally, perceptions of life’s value and purpose were influential at the cultural level, while quality tools and care coordination were essential at the organizational level.
Barriers to screening included factors such as low awareness, fear of cancer diagnosis, and low perceived benefit at the individual level. At the interpersonal group level, barriers included patient misunderstanding, poor rapport, and confusing decision-aid tools. Cultural-level barriers included distrust of the service and fatalistic beliefs. Finally, organizational-level barriers comprised lack of institutional policy, inadequate infrastructure, and absence of insurance coverage.
The study’s findings, which identified critical barriers, facilitators, and implications for lung cancer screening participation, led to the implementation of strategies for a novel artificial intelligence screening method. These strategies, designed to balance cost-benefit considerations, ‘workdays’ lost due to illness, and family hardship, are crucial for enhancing lung cancer screening uptake and instilling confidence in the proposed solutions.
No funding was provided.
Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38791759/
Gebremeskel TG, Romeo F, Shama AT, et al. (2024). “Facilitators and Barriers to Lung Cancer Screening during Long COVID: A Global Systematic Review and Meta-Study Synthesis of Qualitative Research.” Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2024 Apr 25;21(5):534. doi: 10.3390/ijerph21050534. PMID: 38791759; PMCID: PMC11121223.
