Assessing the effectiveness of an online intervention addressing barriers to skin cancer screening behaviours among middle-aged men: A randomized controlled trial
Description: Melanoma can be a deadly disease when diagnosed at an advanced stage, but survival rates are > 98% when detected early and treated. Melanoma often develops with a visible, preclinical phase, hence there are opportunities for early detection via visually inspecting the skin. Skin self-examination (SSE) followed by physician-led clinical skin examination (CSE) are effective means to detect early signs of melanoma1. Middle-age men are often diagnosed with more advanced melanoma, have worse prognosis, and face higher mortality compared to women in the same age groups and younger men. Melanoma early detection interventions targeting men's SSE and CSE behaviours are sparse, primarily because male gender and older age are not generally regarded as risk factors for melanoma. Yet, approximately 60% of all deaths from melanoma occur in men of 50 years of age or older [SEER database; 2013]. Most available melanoma prevention interventions targeting SSE and CSE utilize an in-person educational model, which is time and resource-intensive, and potentially less amenable to men. There is an urgent need for low-cost, effective (evidence-based), and easily accessible interventions targeting middle-age men's SSE and CSE, as part of the overall effort to decrease melanoma-related mortality in this population.
Amount: CA$150,000
Funding type: fellowship
Funder scheme: CIHR Fellowship
Start date: 2019-03-01
End date: 2022-02-28
Investigator: Adina Coroiu
Institution: Harvard School of Public Health (Massachusetts)
Subfield: Oncology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Funded outputs count: 0
Funder award ID: 158130_1
OpenAlex ID: G5879953219