Integrating Breast Cancer Evaluation With a Cervical Cancer Toolkit for Low-Resource Settings

Abstract

Purpose To address high breast cancer (BC) mortality globally and especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), resource-stratified screening and treatment guidelines have been provided by global expert groups. How these guidelines are implemented and aligned with facility readiness in low-resource settings is less well understood. We propose to modify, apply, and evaluate a cervical cancer toolkit designed to evaluate facility readiness in LMICs as an implementation science tool for the treatment of BC. Methods We will draw upon an existing toolkit for cervical cancer, the Improving Data for Decision Making in Global Cervical Cancer Programs (IDCCP) developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, WHO, and the George W. Bush Institute. The IDCCP includes 13 domains—for example, services, staffing, infrastructure, procurement and supply chain, equipment and supplies, referral pathways, etc—by which to assess facility readiness, and information on six categories is available in India’s District Level Household and Facility Level Survey (2012 to 2013). We applied the IDCCP toolkit for cervical cancer screening in India using District Level Household and Facility Level Survey data and propose to extend this work to include BC screening evaluation per Indian government guidelines—clinical breast exam followed by ultrasound, with or without mammography, followed by biopsy as needed across the four tiers of India’s public health care system. As a test of construct validation, we will correlate facility readiness for BC screening at the district level with self-reported BC examination data at the district level using the National Family Health Survey-4 (2015 to 2016). Results Composite scores that summarize the six categories for cervical cancer yield wide variation in facility readiness across 30 states and union territories, with a trend toward higher scores for higher levels of the public health care system. Some consistencies emerge for higher-performing states, such as Maharashtra and Goa. We will conduct similar analyses for BC screening after modifying the tool kit for BC. Conclusion The modified toolkit for either BC alone or in combination with cervical cancer can be considered an implementation science tool to by which assess facility readiness of health centers in LMICs and for understanding gaps in the implementation of government guidelines. AUTHORS' DISCLOSURES OF POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST The following represents disclosure information provided by authors of this manuscript. All relationships are considered compensated. Relationships are self-held unless noted. I = Immediate Family Member, Inst = My Institution. Relationships may not relate to the subject matter of this manuscript. For more information about ASCO's conflict of interest policy, please refer to www.asco.org/rwc or ascopubs.org/jco/site/ifc . No COIs from the authors.