Research article
Colorectal cancer prevention for low-income, sociodemographically-diverse adults in public housing: baseline findings of a randomized controlled trial
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* Corresponding author: Lorna H McNeill lmcneill@mdanderson.org
- † Equal contributors
1 Department of Health Disparities Research, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, USA
2 Center for Community-Based Research, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, USA
3 Division of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA
4 Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, USA
BMC Public Health 2009, 9:353 doi:10.1186/1471-2458-9-353
Published: 18 September 2009Abstract
Background
This paper presents the study design, intervention components, and baseline data from Open Doors to Health, a study designed to address social contextual factors in colorectal cancer (CRC) prevention for low-income, racial/ethnic minority populations.
Methods
A cluster randomized design with 12 housing sites as the primary sampling units was used: 6 sites were assigned to a "Peer-led plus Screening Access" (PL) condition, and 6 were assigned to "Screening Access only" (SCR) condition. Study-related outcomes were CRC screening, physical activity (measured as mean steps/day), and multivitamin use.
Results
At baseline (unweighted sample size = 1554), two-thirds self-reported that they were current with screening recommendations for CRC (corrected for medical records validation, prevalence was 52%), with half having received a colonoscopy (54%); 96% had health insurance. Mean steps per day was 5648 (se mean = 224), and on average 28% of the sample reported regular multivitamin use. Residents reported high levels of social support [mean = 4.40 (se = .03)] and moderately extensive social networks [mean = 2.66 (se = .02)].
Conclusion
Few studies have conducted community-based studies in public housing communities; these data suggest areas for improvement and future opportunities for intervention development and dissemination. Findings from the randomized trial will determine the effectiveness of the intervention on our health-related outcomes as well as inform future avenues of research.