"Despite national efforts to integrate social risk screening and referral programs within the oncology setting to advance cancer health equity, many community oncology practices have limited social risk screening and referral programs," write Matthew P. Banegas, PhD, of the University of California San Diego, and colleagues."Our findings underscore the importance of screening for social risks at the time of cancer diagnosis and connecting patients with relevant social services.
Merrill said these patients also often lack any sort of support system and may sometimes struggle with coexistentthat, when combined with financial hardship,"create huge barriers for patients to get care, especially the frequent visits required for cancer treatment," she said. The researchers analyzed data from 1277 adults enrolled in Kaiser Permanente Northwest who were diagnosed with cancer between June 2017 and December 2019. Within 90 days before or after their diagnosis, all the participants completed a social risk survey that assessed their financial hardship, food insecurity, housing instability, and transportation difficulties.