1460 - Knowledge of the French Population on Colorectal Cancer Screening: Data from the Edifice 3 Survey

Abstract

ABSTRACT Background In France, following a pilot population-based screening program in 2002–2003, a national organized program targeting 17 million people was progressively implemented from 2005 to 2009. EDIFICE surveys are iterative polls focusing on cancer screening behavior. The EDIFICE 3 survey was conducted in 2011 and partly dedicated to knowledge of the colorectal cancer screening process. Methods This third nationwide observational study, EDIFICE 3, was conducted via phone interviews among a representative sample of 946 subjects aged between 50 and 74 years, who had never been treated for cancer. 59% of the population declared having undergone colorectal cancer screening (fecal test or colonoscopy). Results Interviewed about the screening process, 510/946 (54%) of the French population were unaware of the procedure after a positive fecal test and 782/946 (83%) were unaware of how soon a new test should be performed after a negative result. Only 79/946 (8%) were aware of what to do after either a positive or a negative test and 47% in one out of the two cases. 84% of subjects over assessed (by a factor 2 to 10) the probability of having cancer after a positive test. In contrast, 65% were aware of the possibility of a false negative test (neither gender, educational level, socio economic level impacted the knowledge). Conclusions This study demonstrates a lack of detailed knowledge on the colorectal cancer screening process in the French national program. This raises the issue of the fairness of the process and may be a reason for the current poor uptake. This should be tackled by improving the transmission of information via general practitioners, institutional letters sent directly to subjects and mass media. Disclosure All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.