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Evaluating variations in the barriers to colorectal cancer screening associated with telehealth use in rural U.S. Pacific Northwest

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Abstract

Purpose

The incidence and mortality rates of colorectal cancer (CRC) remain consistently high in rural populations. Telehealth can improve screening uptake by overcoming individual and environmental disadvantages in rural communities. The present study aimed to characterize varying barriers to CRC screening between rural individuals with and without experience in using telehealth.

Method

The cross-sectional study surveyed 250 adults aged 45–75 residing in rural U.S. states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington from June to September 2022. The associations between CRC screening and four sets of individual and environmental factors specific to rural populations (i.e., demographic characteristics, accessibility, patient–provider factors, and psychological factors) were assessed among respondents with and without past telehealth adoption.

Result

Respondents with past telehealth use were more likely to screen if they were married, had a better health status, had experienced discrimination in health care, and had perceived susceptibility, screening efficacy, and cancer fear, but less likely to screen when they worried about privacy or had feelings of embarrassment, pain, and discomfort. Among respondents without past telehealth use, the odds of CRC screening decreased with busy schedules, travel burden, discrimination in health care, and lower perceived needs.

Conclusion

Rural individuals with and without previous telehealth experience face different barriers to CRC screening. The finding suggests the potential efficacy of telehealth in mitigating critical barriers to CRC screening associated with social, health care, and built environments of rural communities.

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon request.

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Funding

This work was partially supported by Patrick Coolen Health Communication Entrepreneurs Endowment at Washington State University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Edward R. Murrow College of Communication, Washington State University, Murrow Hall 211, Pullman, WA, 99164, USA

    Wei Peng

  2. Department of Communication, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, USA

    Qian Huang

  3. TSET Health Promotion Research Center, Stephenson Cancer Center, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA

    Bingjing Mao

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  1. Wei Peng
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  2. Qian Huang
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the conceptualization and design. WP: Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal analysis, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing, Funding acquisition. QH: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing. BM: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing – original draft. All authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Wei Peng.

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IRB exemption was granted by Washington State University for this study.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Peng, W., Huang, Q. & Mao, B. Evaluating variations in the barriers to colorectal cancer screening associated with telehealth use in rural U.S. Pacific Northwest. Cancer Causes Control 35, 635–645 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552-023-01819-3

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