Patient Navigation Services to Increase Cervical Cancer Screening and Advance Health Equity

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This is a brief summary of the CPSTF finding and systematic review evidence for Cancer Screening: Patient Navigation Services to Increase Cervical Cancer Screening and Advance Health Equity. Read a complete summary of the systematic review and CPSTF finding.

This information is also availble in a PDF version [PDF – 158 kB].

Summary of Community Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation

The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) recommends patient navigation services to increase cervical cancer screening by Pap test among historically disadvantaged racial and ethnic populations and people with lower incomes. Patient navigation services are expected to advance health equity when implemented among these populations who often have lower screening rates.1

CPSTF also recommends patient navigation services to increase breast and colorectal cancer screening.

Major Findings

The CPSTF recommendation is based on evidence from a systematic review of 3 studies. Patient navigation interventions increased cervical cancer screening by Pap test by a median of 22.5 percentage points or 64.5%. None of the included studies reported on the use of high-risk human papillomavirus (hrHPV) test.

What are Patient Navigation Services?

Healthcare systems provide patient navigation services to help patients overcome barriers to accessing cervical cancer screening. Services are often offered to populations experiencing greater disparities in cancer screening, including people from historically disadvantaged racial and ethnic populations and people with lower incomes. They include client reminders, reduced structural barriers or improved assistance getting around them, reduced out-of-pocket costs, or a combination of these approaches. Services may also provide one-on-one or group education.

Patient navigation services are delivered by community health workers, patient navigators, healthcare professionals, nurses, social workers, or others. They are often designed to be culturally- and language-appropriate.

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Facts about Cervical Cancer

  • In 2019, 12,795 new cases of cervical cancer were reported among women in the United States, and 4,152 women died.1
  • In 2018, cervical cancer screening rates in the United States were below Healthy People 2020 targets. Rates were even lower among women with lower incomes, women who were uninsured, and women who only had public health insurance coverage.2
  • Cervical cancer screening finds precancers or detects cancer at an earlier stage, when it is easier to treat.3,4

Learn More

The Community Guide, What Works to Increase Cancer Screening

National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP)

National Cancer Institute, Evidence-based Cancer Control Programs (EBCCP)

References

1 U.S. Cancer Statistics Working Group. U.S. Cancer Statistics Data Visualizations Tool, based on 2019 data. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Cancer Institute: 2019. Accessed Sept 29, 2022. www.cdc.gov/cancer/dataviz.

2 Sabatino SA, Thompson TD, White MC et al. Cancer screening test receipt – United States, 2018. MMWR 2021;70(2):29-35.

3 CDC. Basic information about cervical cancer. Atlanta (GA): 2021. Accessed Sept 29, 2022. www.cdc.gov/cancer/cervical/basic_info/index.htm.

4 CDC. What should I know about screening? Atlanta (GA): 2021. Accessed Sept 29, 2022. https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/cervical/basic_info/screening.htm.

Established in 1996 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) is an independent, nonfederal panel of public health and prevention experts whose members are appointed by the director of CDC. CPSTF provides information for a wide range of decision makers on programs, services, and other interventions aimed at improving population health. Although CDC provides administrative, scientific, and technical support for CPSTF, the recommendations developed are those of CPSTF and do not undergo review or approval by CDC. Find more information at www.thecommunityguide.org.