Closing the Cancer Gap: The Multicancer Early Detection (MCED) Consortium Releases Two New Health Equity Papers

Evaluating how MCED technologies may improve cancer detection, treatment, and care to benefit all people.

WASHINGTON, March 2, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- When certain cancers are detected early, approximately 9 in 10 cancer patients will live five years or more, according to Cancer Research UK[1]. Despite the well-known benefits of early detection through recommended cancer screening, significant gaps in screening uptake exist among medically underserved populations. Uninsured or underinsured individuals, recent immigrants, individuals living in rural or remote areas, people with low incomes and poor education, and members of racial and ethnic minority groups are among those who experience disparities in cancer screening and follow-up care.

The Multicancer Early Detection (MCED) Consortium, a public-private collaboration between organizations in the U.S. and the U.K., is dedicated to reducing the burden of cancer by evaluating how MCED technologies may improve cancer detection, treatment, and care to benefit all people. Today, they announced the release of two white papers developed by the Consortium's Health Equity Workgroup: Patient Barriers to Care: A Health Equity Landscape Analysis for Emerging Multicancer Early Detection Tests and Building Health Equity through Research Study Design for Multicancer Early Detection Tests: Key Considerations. The papers examine the benefits, harms, and modifiable barriers to the acceptability and uptake of MCEDs among diverse, underrepresented populations and offer insightful recommendations to support equitable and informed participation in these emerging technologies. These documents serve as a key step in determining how MCED technologies could be used to reduce longstanding disparities in cancer care.

"Multi-Cancer Early Detection tests hold considerable promise in accelerating cancer diagnosis, but they require careful evaluation to ensure benefit for all patients. We anticipate that these landmark papers will serve as useful guides for clinicians, policymakers, and researchers who are considering equitable implementation of this game-changing technology," said Health Equity Workgroup Leadership
Esther Krofah, Chair
Katherine Brain, UK Deputy Chair
Carmen Guerra, US Deputy Chair

The Consortium's focus on health equity encompasses all parts of the development and implementation of MCED technologies. In Patient Barriers to Care: A Health Equity Landscape Analysis for Emerging Multicancer Early Detection Tests, the Health Equity Workgroup examines how demographic factors and social determinants of health, such as economic stability, access to education and healthcare, and environment create barriers to cancer prevention, screening, diagnosis, and treatment services. The Health Equity Workgroup provides the following communication and care delivery strategies to mitigate some of these barriers:

• Emphasize patient-centered care for effective patient-physician communication and informed patient choice in cancer testing decision-making.
• Employ educational interventions, community outreach programs, and increased provider recommendations for testing and research studies to engage underrepresented groups effectively.
• Create partnerships between health systems and community organizations to provide wide venues for cancer testing education and on-site opportunities.
• Use interventions and communications beyond provider recommendations, such as reminder letters/phone calls/text messages, flexible appointments, and community-based testing.

In Building Health Equity through Research Study Design for Multicancer Early Detection Tests: Key Considerations, the Consortium addresses the need for greater diversity in clinical research study populations to document how MCEDs may impact demographic groups differently. The paper outlines several strategies for leveraging relationships of trust at the patient-provider level as well as collaborating with larger institutions and patients' wider communities to ensure equitable opportunity for research study participation.

Both papers are available to be read here.

For more information about the Consortium, visit our website.

Multicancer Early Detection (MCED) is a set of emerging technologies that could allow clinicians to screen and detect multiple cancers at early stages. The MCED Consortium has brought together stakeholders from across the healthcare continuum to evaluate their benefits and risks, to develop guidance for their [potential] introduction into clinical care, including equitable access and use, and to accelerate education on how they may improve patient outcomes and survival. To learn more about the Consortium, please visit our website.

Healthsperien, LLC., is a nationally recognized health care policy consulting firm focused on federal and state regulatory and legislative policy analysis, advocacy, and implementation issues. Their mission is to accelerate responsible and sustainable health care system innovation and transformation to improve health outcomes for all – especially the most vulnerable. www.healthsperien.com 

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¹Why is early diagnosis important?, Published June 2021, https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/cancer-symptoms/why-is-early-diagnosis-important

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