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Effective Colorectal Cancer Education for Asian Americans: A Michigan Program

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Abstract

Asian Americans are among the fastest growing population groups in the USA. Despite the fact that colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second most common cancer for this group, Asian Americans have low CRC screening rates. An established health promotion program, Healthy Asian Americans Project (HAAP), expanded to include community-based CRC education during 2005–2006. Using Asian-language media, HAAP promoted awareness throughout local Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Hmong, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese American communities and recruited men and women over 50 years to attend health fairs at local community/cultural centers. Evaluation data from 304 participants in an evidence-based educational intervention showed significantly increased knowledge and attitudes about the importance of screening. Follow-up conducted between 6 and 12 months showed that 78% of those receiving the educational intervention had been screened in the last 12 months, compared with the 37% who had ever been screened with any of the tests prior to the study. This community-based health promotion program reached underserved populations and the educational intervention improved CRC screening rates. This and similar programs may help lower CRC mortality among Asian Americans.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Nursing, University of Michigan (UM), Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Tsu-Yin Wu, Yu-Ying Tang, Judy Chen, Janilla Lee & Deborah Oakley

  2. School of Nursing, Eastern Michigan University, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Tsu-Yin Wu

  3. Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    John Y. Kao

  4. School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Hsing-Fang Hsieh

  5. Healthy Asian Americans Project, School of Nursing, Eastern Michigan University, Room 121 Marshall, Ypsilanti, MI, 48197, USA

    Tsu-Yin Wu

Authors
  1. Tsu-Yin Wu
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  2. John Y. Kao
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  3. Hsing-Fang Hsieh
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  4. Yu-Ying Tang
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  5. Judy Chen
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  6. Janilla Lee
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  7. Deborah Oakley
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Correspondence to Tsu-Yin Wu.

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Supported by Michigan Department of Community Health, Contract No. 20060049.

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Wu, TY., Kao, J.Y., Hsieh, HF. et al. Effective Colorectal Cancer Education for Asian Americans: A Michigan Program. J Canc Educ 25, 146–152 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13187-009-0009-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13187-009-0009-x

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