Among age-eligible US adults, the prevalence of past-year screening for breast, cervical, and prostate cancers remained lower in 2021 compared with pre-pandemic levels, according to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Jessica Star, MPH, and colleagues used nationally representative data to examine whether cancer screening prevalence in the United States in 2021 returned to pre-pandemic levels. Self-reported data regarding age-eligible screening for breast, cervical, prostate, and colorectal cancer were obtained for 2019 and 2021. Past-year screening in the United States decreased from 59.9% to 57.1% for breast cancer, from 45.3% to 39.0% for cervical cancer, and from 39.5% to 36.3% for prostate cancer between 2019 and 2021 (adjusted prevalence ratios [aPRs], 0.94, 0.85, and 0.9, respectively). The most noticeable declines were seen for non-Hispanic Asians. The prevalence of colorectal cancer screening remained unchanged. “These findings reinforce the importance of strengthening return to screening campaigns for cancer prevention and control, and the major role physicians and other healthcare providers should play for the success of the campaigns,” Star and colleagues wrote.
