Authors: Vipin Thampi, Roopa Hariprasad, Amrita John, Suzanne Nethan, Kavitha Dhanasekaran, Vipin Kumar, Praveen Birur, J. S. Thakur, Richard Lilford, Nasir M. Rajpoot, Paramjit Gill
In this cross-sectional study, researchers sought to assess the ability of community health workers to detect early signs of oral cancer. Ten community health workers were trained to collect medical histories, perform oral inspections and identify lesions, and photograph the oral cavity. CHWs were then tasked with surveying 1,200 participants from 10 regions in the Gautam Budhnagar district, Uttar Pradesh, India. Following screening by CHWs, participants were examined by dentists at a local health facility. Researchers found that CHWs were able to correctly detect nearly 97 percent of oral cancer cases. The results of this study suggest that CHWs may be utilized in oral cancer screening, particularly in under-resourced communities.
Link: Feasibility of Training Community Health Workers in the Detection of Oral Cancer
Resource Topic: Community Health Workers/Volunteers, Intervention, cancer, mHealth and Technology
Resource Type: Research
Year: 2022
Region: Asia
Country: India
Publisher May Restrict Access: No