Research project Cancer screening, stage at diagnosis and survival among people with disabilities
Cancer screening, stage at diagnosis and survival among people with disabilities: Evidences from the Swedish national registers
We aim to quantify the extent to which disability is related to lower screening attendance, late stage diagnoses and lower survival, independently and in synergy with socioeconomic, psychosocial and clinical factors in Sweden.
Project description
Disability is associated with health inequities worldwide. Studies mainly conducted in the US show lower screening attendance rates, more advanced cancer stage at diagnosis and shorter survival for people with disabilities. However, research on disadvantages in cancer associated with disability has remained scarce in Europe, including Sweden. Furthermore, investigation of cancer inequities associated with disability is extremely challenging, as it requires understanding of the associated socioeconomic, psychosocial and health conditions.
We aim to quantify the extent to which disability is related to lower screening attendance, late stage diagnoses and lower survival, independently and in synergy with socioeconomic, psychosocial and clinical factors in Sweden. We will use Swedish national register data from 2004, but whenever possible from 1994, to the latest available, and conduct population-based cohort studies to quantify cancer-related inequalities for people with disabilities. We will employ rigorous epidemiological approaches and statistical techniques such as causal inference methodologies to obtain unbiased estimations. The mediating mechanisms of inequalities, such as socioeconomic and psychosocial disadvantages, will be examined. Analyses will be repeated for cancer and disability subtypes, to investigate whether there are groups whose disadvantages are particularly pronounced.
We will provide reference information on disability-related cancer inequalities in Sweden. The findings will be informative to public health and social agencies, health care professionals, and care providers in their daily practice and health policy-making.
Project members
Project managers
Alessandra Grotta
Researcher
Members
Natalie Holowko
Research Specialist
Rino Bellocco
Associate Professor
Katja Fall
Professor
Ayako Hiyoshi
Guest Researcher
Mikael Rostila
Professor
Lotta Vikström
Professor