Can you imagine a world where cancer is preventable, detectable, and beatable for all? Can you imagine a world where no one dies of cancer?
This future is within our grasp—we have the tools to prevent many cancers or detect them early when successful treatment is most likely. But it takes all of us—including employers and policymakers—working together to educate people on the health checks they need and provide systemic support to overcome barriers to accessing prevention and early detection services. And it will take each and every individual taking charge of their health with risk reduction methods and routine cancer screenings to achieve better outcomes.
Let’s take those routine screenings. Although routine screenings are available for only five cancer types (out of hundreds), they are highly effective in reducing mortality rates for those cancers. In some cases, the screenings are preventive—for instance, you can find and remove precancerous cells during a Pap test, or identify and remove polyps during a colonoscopy, thus stopping cancer before it starts. For other cancer types, it’s about early detection—with routine screening, you can get an early diagnosis that may lead to less extensive treatment, more treatment options, and better chances of survival. Early Detection = Better Outcomes!
Nearly 7 in 10 of us miss opportunities to detect cancer early and give ourselves the best shot at health.
With all this good news, you would think people would be running to the doctor’s office for their routine screenings. But the truth is we are a long way off from a stampede to screening.
The Prevent Cancer Foundation’s 2024 Early Detection Survey revealed that nearly 7 in 10 US adults were behind on at least one routine cancer screening. That means nearly 7 in 10 of us are missing opportunities to detect cancer early and give ourselves the best shot at health.
For some cancer types, the screening rates are even worse. Screening rates for lung cancer and vaccination rates for human papillomavirus (HPV), which can cause at least six types of cancer, are far too low. The percentage of eligible people being screened for lung cancer is less than 6 percent, according to the American Lung Association, and HPV vaccination rates are around 65 percent of girls and 10 percent of boys (ages 13–17), the American Cancer Society reports.
While reasons for being behind vary, the top reported reason people were not up to date on their routine cancer screenings was that they simply didn’t know they needed to be screened. This was one of the top reasons, regardless of age, sex, or race/ethnicity.
As CEO of a patient advocacy organization, that tells me we have our work cut out for us.
Education is key to getting people to make health-care appointments and keep those appointments. We know that people respond when they have the facts. In that same survey, 73 percent of people said they would be more likely to schedule their routine cancer screenings after they learned the benefits of early detection. I’ll say it again: Early Detection = Better Outcomes! We need to shout it from the mountaintops.
Screening recommendations can be confusing, so we do our best to make it as simple as possible to give people the info they need. Those at average risk can follow the guidelines based on their age. Those with additional risk factors should talk to a health-care provider, since the age of initiation, screening type, or screening frequency may be different for them.
Access issues also cause confusion, including which screenings are covered by your insurance. By breaking down this info, we are empowering people to check their health and get the screenings they need.
We can’t do it alone. It takes a symphony of voices to give people critical information in a familiar and uncomplicated way, provide the support they need, and motivate them to act. It takes all of us working together toward our shared future of a world where no one dies of cancer.