National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable Honors Community Leaders for Efforts to Increase Screening

ATLANTA, March 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable (NCCRT), founded by the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is honoring leaders with the 2020 80% In Every Community National Achievement Award, given in recognition of distinguished, ongoing efforts to increase colorectal cancer screening rates across the United States.

Excluding skin cancers, colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer diagnosed in both men and women in the United States and the second most common cause of cancer deaths when men and women are combined.

"Regular colorectal cancer screening is one of the most powerful weapons for preventing colorectal cancer," said Richard Wender, MD, ACS chief cancer control officer, and NCCRT chair. "With regular screening, most polyps can be found and removed before they have the chance to turn into cancer. Screening can also find colorectal cancer early, when it's small and easier to treat. So, we are honored to recognize the dedication of these community leaders that share our goal of increasing the number of people that have access to life-saving colorectal cancer screening."

80% in Every Community is an NCCRT initiative that works with community health centers, health plans, hospitals, health systems, employers, and others to reach 80% colorectal cancer screening rates nationally. Nearly 1,800 organizations have signed a pledge to make this goal a priority.

The 80% In Every Community National Achievement Award includes one grand prize winner and five other honorees. Each receives a monetary award to be used to support continued efforts to increase screening for colorectal cancer.

This year's recipients include The University of Alabama at Birmingham, AL; Representative Fred Allen, Little Rock, AR; Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, TX; Norton Sound Health Corporation, Nome, AK; North Hudson Community Action Corporation, Union City, NJ; and North Dakota Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, Bismarck, ND.

Award winners will be recognized during the annual NCCRT Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month Webcast on March 5 at 2:00 pm ET featuring Dr. Wender and other guests celebrating the successes of the 80% in Every Community initiative and sharing more about colorectal cancer screening. Register to attend the live webcast and learn more about increasing colorectal cancer screening rates.

More details about this year's recipients:

$3,000 Grand Prize Winner:
Category: Employer
The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
Known for its innovative and interdisciplinary approach to education at both the graduate and undergraduate levels, the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is the state of Alabama's largest employer and an internationally renowned research university and academic medical center. Its professional schools and specialty patient-care programs are consistently ranked among the nation's top 50. In 2016, UAB Medicine and UAB Employee Wellness began partnering with the American Cancer Society to increase colorectal cancer screening and awareness among the university's 23,000 employees. These efforts led to the Love Your Bum, Get it Screened campaign, a creative and multifaceted campaign with screening events including an inflatable walk-through colon, lunch and learns with physician presentations, educational videos highlighting UAB leadership, contests, and screening and awareness messages on employee websites and social media. As a result, colorectal cancer screening among UAB employees enrolled in a medical plan has increased from 54% in 2014 to 68% in 2019.

$1,000 Honoree:
Category: Policy Maker/Elected Leader
Representative Fred Allen, Little Rock, AR
Representative Fred Allen is a fifth term legislator in the Arkansas State House of Representatives. As a stage IV prostate cancer survivor, Representative Allen understands how important it is to have access to timely, quality cancer screening, diagnostic follow up, and treatment. However, as of 2014, colorectal cancer screening in Arkansas ranked 46^th in the nation despite being one of 12 states with a cluster of counties experiencing significantly high death rates from colorectal cancer. As a result, Representative Allen partnered with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network to lead a legislative effort to improve access and funding for colorectal cancer screening in Arkansas. Act 655, signed into law on April 2, 2019, established the Arkansas Colorectal Cancer Screening Initiative and provides $500,000 in new funding for colorectal cancer screening, education, diagnostic, and treatment services with priority given to uninsured and underinsured individuals across the state.

$1,000 Honoree:
Category: Cancer Center
Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Houston, TX
The NCI-designated Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center (DLDCCC) at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, engages with community partners to improve access to cancer screening and prevention among the medically underserved. In collaboration with Harris Health System, a safety net healthcare provider, and community clinics, the DLDCCC implements multi-level interventions to increase cancer screening and primary prevention. Its colorectal cancer screening program includes community outreach, culturally and linguistically tailored educational materials, point-of-care patient education videos, patient navigation services, and provider and staff training. Since 2010, DLDCCC has achieved an over 250% increase in the proportion of age-eligible patients who complete a fecal immunochemical test (FIT) at Harris Health. In 2018, DLDCCC navigated 5,422 patients with an abnormal FIT to diagnostic follow-up, educated 21,686 patients about colorectal cancer screening, and distributed FIT kits and instruction sheets to 74,583 patients. Through its Community Theater program, the DLDCCC raises awareness about cancer screening and early detection at community venues in medically underserved areas.

$1,000 Honoree:
Category: Community Health Center
Norton Sound Health Corporation, Nome, AK
Norton Sound Health Corporation (NSHC) is a tribally owned and operated healthcare organization serving 20 tribes in the Bering Strait region, a 44,000 square-mile section of northwestern Alaska. The Alaska Native population that NSHC serves has significantly higher colorectal cancer incidence and mortality rates compared with national averages. NSHC patients also experience significant barriers to screening; most patients live below 200% of the Federal Poverty level, many communities are only accessible by airplane, and five villages do not have running water or sewer. Despite these challenges, NSHC has been able to increase colorectal cancer screening rates from 7% in 2013 to 70.5% in 2019. NSHC proactively identifies patients in need of screening, offers patients a choice of screening tests, provides stool tests with no out of pocket costs, offers colonoscopy screening each month in the Nome clinic, and coordinates all of the necessary arrangements including travel, housing, food, and escorts for patients that need to travel for a colonoscopy.

$1,000 Honoree:
Category: Community Health Center
North Hudson Community Action Corporation, Union City, NJ
North Hudson Community Action Corporation (NHCAC) is the largest health center in New Jersey with 10 delivery sites located in Hudson, Bergen and Passaic counties. NHCAC, a certified Patient Centered Medical Home, has made colorectal cancer screening a priority across its health centers which serve over 86,000 predominately Hispanic/Latino patients. After receiving an American Cancer Society grant to accelerate the existing work that the health center was doing to increase colorectal cancer screening in 2014, NHCAC implemented a number of evidence-based systems changes, including patient navigation, patient and provider reminders, and reduction of structural barriers including transportation and client costs. Screening eligible patients also received a screening recommendation at all health center visits, including dental and behavior health, to avoid critical, missed opportunities. As a result, NHCAC reached an 84% screening rate in 2018, achieving the 80% goal and dramatically improving access to quality preventative care for the community they serve.

$1,000 Honoree:
Category: Cancer Coalition/State Roundtable
North Dakota Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, Bismarck, ND
The North Dakota Colorectal Cancer Roundtable (NDCCRT), co-led by the American Cancer Society and the North Dakota Department of Health, is a statewide coalition of organizations dedicated to reducing the incidence of and mortality from colorectal cancer in North Dakota, through coordinated leadership and strategic planning. Prior to the NDCCRT's formation in 2015, North Dakota had some of the lowest screening rates in the nation. With participation from numerous partners, including community health centers, health plans, integrated delivery systems, the primary care association, the Tribal Chairmen's Health Board, the Indian Health Services, and the North Dakota Medical Association, NDCCRT partners have worked together to forge a coordinated, collaborative, and focused prioritization of colorectal cancer screening across the state. Coordinated activities focused on provider education, public awareness, and access to care. Colorectal cancer screening in North Dakota has increased from 58% in 2012 to 67% in 2018, making it one of the most improved states in the nation.

To learn more about the NCCRT, and the 80% In Every Community initiative, visit https://nccrt.org/.

SOURCE American Cancer Society

Related Links

www.cancer.org