Additional outreach effort of providing an opportunity to obtain a kit for fecal immunochemical test during the general health check-up to improve colorectal cancer screening rate in Japan: A longitudinal study.

Abstract

ObjectivesA sufficient screening rate is indispensable to optimize the positive impact of colorectal cancer (CRC) screening. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of an additional outreach of providing an opportunity to obtain a kit for fecal immunochemical test (FIT) during the general health check-up to increase CRC screening rate.MethodsThis was a longitudinal study using pre-existing data in Kujukuri Town, Japan. The town provided CRC screening in the fiscal year (FY) 2017 using an existing procedure for all beneficiaries of the National Health Insurance, whereas in FY 2018, an additional outreach effort was made to only those with an even number of age (exposed group), who were offered an opportunity to obtain a kit for FIT at the time of general health check-ups but not to those with an odd number of age (control group). To estimate the effectiveness, generalized estimating equation (GEE) with individuals as clusters was performed.ResultsIn total, 3,530 individuals were included (1,708 in the control group and 1,822 in the exposed group). GEE showed significant interaction between the groups (control and exposed) and FYs (2017 and 2018) (pConclusionsAdditional outreach of providing an opportunity to obtain a kit for FIT at the time of the general health check-up improved the CRC screening rate. However, screening rate achieved by this strategy remained low, indicating further efforts is required.