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The COVID-19 pandemic led to delays in routine preventative primary care and declines in HPV immunization rates. Providers and healthcare organizations needed to explore new ways to engage individuals to resume preventive care behaviors. Thus, we evaluated the effectiveness of using customized electronic reminders with provider recommendations for HPV vaccination to increase HPV vaccinations among adolescents and young adults, ages 9–25. Using stratified randomization, participants were divided into two groups: usual care (control) (N = 3703) and intervention (N = 3705). The control group received usual care including in-person provider recommendations, visual reminders in exam waiting rooms, bundling of vaccinations, and phone call reminders. The intervention group received usual care and an electronic reminder (SMS, email or patient portal message) at least once, and up to three times (spaced at an interval of 1 reminder per month). The intervention group had a 17% statistically significantly higher odds of uptake of additional HPV vaccinations than the usual care group (Adjusted Odds Ratio: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.01–1.36). This work supports previous findings that electronic reminders are effective at increasing immunizations and potentially decreasing healthcare costs for the treatment of HPV-related cancers.

According to the Pan American Health Organization, noncommunicable diseases, including cancer, are the leading causes of preventable and premature death in the Americas. Governments and health care systems in Latin America face numerous challenges as a result of increasing morbidity and mortality from cancer. Multiple international organizations have recognized the need for collaborative action on and technical support for cancer research and control in Latin America. The Center for Global Health at the US National Cancer Institute (NCI-CGH) is one entity among many that are working in the region and has sought to develop a strategy for working in Latin America that draws on and expands the collaborative potential of engaged, skilled, and diverse partners. NCI-CGH has worked toward developing and implementing initiatives in collaboration with global partners that share the common objectives of building a global cancer research community and translating research results into evidence-informed policy and practice. Both objectives are complementary and synergistic and are additionally supported by an overarching strategic framework that is focused on partnerships and science diplomacy. This work highlights the overall strategy for NCI-CGH engagement in Latin America through partnerships and diplomacy, and highlights selected collaborative efforts that are aimed at improving cancer outcomes in the region.

We examined the readiness of primary care clinicians to implement lung cancer screening programs in their practice settings in light of recent policy changes in the U.S. Attendees of two large continuing medical education events in Texas held in October and November of 2014 completed surveys about their current lung cancer screening practices and implementation needs. Surveys were completed by 350 participants (57.2% of registered attendees). Although 89.5% of participants routinely screened their patients for tobacco use, only 10.1% had a formal lung cancer screening program in their practice. More than half (56.0%) planned to refer eligible patients for lung cancer screening, 35.6% were not sure, and 8.3% did not plan to refer. Priority areas for implementing lung cancer screening programs in their settings included 1) greater clarity about coverage by private insurance and Medicare, 2) information about available screening centers offering low-dose computed tomography, 3) patient education and shared decision-making tools, 4) implementation toolkits and training for clinic staff, 5) integrating screening programs in electronic health records, and 6) more clarity about clinical guidelines. Practical needs related to identifying eligible patients, referral to screening centers, and tools for shared decision-making must be addressed before lung cancer screening can be implemented on a national scale.