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Ohio
Task Force Brings Screening and Education to a Region With a High Colorectal Cancer Burden
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Public Health Problem
Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, and is the third-most common cancer in men and women, nationally and in Ohio. By early 2004, the Ohio Department of Health had determined
that Allen County and surrounding areas in West Central Ohio were experiencing higher colorectal cancer incidence and morbidity than were other parts of the state. Although a number
of health care providers and health-related organizations in this region had been working individually to increase public awareness and education about colorectal cancer, a coordinated
effort had not as yet been established.
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Program Example
In March 2004, the Ohio Department of Health Cancer Program and the American
Cancer Society's (ACS) Ohio Division helped their local counterparts in West
Central Ohio convene a colorectal cancer summit meeting. The purpose was to
bring together area hospitals, physicians, and other key stakeholders to discuss
the region's colorectal cancer burden and potential collaborative solutions.
This meeting led to the formation of the Northwest Ohio Colorectal Cancer Task
Force, which has since spearheaded community efforts to promote colorectal
cancer screening and education in West Central Ohio. Co-chaired by a
gastroenterologist and a general surgeon, the task force includes
representatives of area hospitals, community health centers, county health
departments, ACS, gastroenterology practices, and other regional partners.
The task force has focused on six counties (Allen, Auglaize, Hardin, Mercer,
Putnam, and Van Wert) surrounding the city of Lima. This region is largely rural
and agricultural apart from Lima, which is a manufacturing center and home to
Ford Motor Company's Lima Engine Plant and the U.S. military's Joint Systems
Manufacturing Center. The total population of the six-county region is about
300,000. According to the 2000 federal census, approximately 84,000 residents
are 50 years of age or older.
During the year following the summit meeting, the task force developed and
promoted two colorectal cancer screening clinics in Lima. St. Rita's Med-Care
Health Clinic screens largely indigent, uninsured, and underserved patients,
including referrals from the Allen County Community Health Center. Screenings at
this location are subsidized by St. Rita's Medical Center, the Lima hospital
that owns the clinic. Insured patients are screened at the West Central Ohio
Surgery and Endoscopy Center, which is affiliated with a local gastroenterology
group practice. Clinic patients can obtain screening services via physician
referral or self-referral; the goal of the clinics is to screen each patient
within 2 weeks of his or her referral�a wait far less than that experienced in
many parts of the United States.
The task force has coordinated educational and promotional efforts aimed at
area physicians and the public. Primary care physicians have received ACS
screening guidelines, clinical practice guidelines from the National
Comprehensive Cancer Network, and ACS patient education materials. Public
service announcements and news spots have aired on a local television station
serving West Central Ohio. Both local gastroenterology groups have promoted
colorectal cancer screening through advertisements placed in the primary
regional newspaper. In addition, the West Central Ohio Health Ministries
Program, a task force partner supported by the Allen County Health Department,
Lima Memorial Hospital, and St. Rita's Medical Center, has worked with area
religious groups to raise awareness of colorectal cancer prevention, especially
among higher-risk minority populations.
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Implication and Impact
As of August 2005, the screening clinics had performed approximately 870 screening colonoscopies.
Indigent, uninsured, or underserved persons received about 220 of these procedures.
Without the work of the task force, this segment of the local population would probably not have had access to screening services. Nearly 90% of such persons who were scheduled
for colonoscopies kept their appointments and received the test.
As a result of the 870 colonoscopies, doctors discovered six colorectal cancers; these patients
were referred to the hospitals participating in the task force for follow-up treatment. Colon polyps were found in 393 of the 870 patients, and polyps determined to be precancerous were removed from 218 of these 393 patients.
The task force continues to meet monthly. Its future aims include accelerating the pace of screening among residents aged 50 years or older; further enhancing access for the underserved
population; developing a uniform, regional registry for colorectal screening data; extending education and screening farther into the more rural parts of West Central Ohio; and securing additional financial support. The task force also plans to approach area employers about providing health coverage for screening colonoscopies.
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Contact Information
Cancer Program*
Ohio Department of Health
246 North High Street, 8th Floor
Columbus,
OH 43216-0118
(614) 752-2464
Fax: (614) 564-2409
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service to our users. These links do not constitute an endorsement of these organizations or their
programs by CDC or the federal government, and none should be inferred. The CDC is not responsible
for the content of the individual organization's Web pages found at these links.
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