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How social determinants of health affect breast cancer screening in the US

Daniel Lorenz

• 2 min read
How social determinants of health affect breast cancer screening in the US
Photo by Angiola Harry / Unsplash

I was stumbling upon a fascinating study while researching technology-enabled patient empowerment, I found some thought-provoking results about inequities in US breast cancer screening.

🎯 Aim: Exploring the influence of social determinants of health (SDOH) on breast cancer screening rates.

❗️ Why SDOH Matter: SDOH encompasses a range of socioeconomic factors, potentially more crucial than healthcare itself in influencing health and well-being. They are key to prevention over treatment.

💡 Results: Unsurprisingly, SDOH significantly impact breast cancer screening rates.

  1. Income: Individuals earning above a certain threshold (38k annually) are more likely to attend screenings.
  2. Education Level: Higher education correlates with better adherence to screening programs and follow-up recommendations.
  3. Insurance Status: This is particularly disheartening.
    1. Women without insurance show the lowest screening attendance (35%).
    2. One study highlighted that even a fee as small as 10 USD could deter attendance.
  4. Ethnicity: Black and Hispanic populations face delayed screenings, leading to higher mortality rates.
  5. Language Barrier: Ineffective communication and lack of translation for screening reports cause delays in follow-ups after abnormal results.

What This Means: The authors suggest that future evidence-based interventions could leverage this data for better outcomes.

🤔 My Thoughts on Solutions: While some SDOH issues require political intervention beyond the scope of technology, I echo Reinhold Niebuhr's sentiment: Courage to change what we can, serenity to accept what we cannot, and wisdom to know the difference.

Applying Technology:

  1. Education Level:
    • Patient-centered care should provide easily digestible, tailored information. LLMs could be instrumental here.
    • Raise short-term education levels with accessible, level-appropriate health education. The focus should be on both content and medium, catering to the patient's capabilities.
  2. Language Barrier:
    • Employ LLMs for the automatic translation of medical documents, despite the risk of errors.
    • Telemedicine networks can offer access to multilingual doctors for explaining medical results.
    • Educational platforms explaining procedures and outcomes in patients' native languages can improve comprehension of English results.
  3. Accessibility:
    • Increase accessibility with mobile screening units as part of a telemedicine concept, reducing the need for on-site doctors.

What are your thoughts? Am I overlooking something, or does this resonate with your views on addressing these disparities in healthcare?

ℹ️ Jhumkhawala V, Lobaina D, Okwaraji G, Zerrouki Y, Burgoa S, Marciniak A, Densley S, Rao M, Diaz D, Knecht M, Sacca L. Social determinants of health and health inequities in breast cancer screening: a scoping review. Front Public Health. 2024 Feb 7;12:1354717. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1354717. PMID: 38375339; PMCID: PMC10875738.