Feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary impact of a text messaging intervention to increase the uptake of lung cancer screening among Latinos: single-arm pilot study.

BACKGROUND: Latinos, the largest minority group in the USA, have particularly low rates of lung cancer screening uptake. Although significant barriers exist, there is an overall strong interest in screening among Latinos when access is facilitated. Latinos have the highest rate of text messaging use in the USA and have expressed strong interest in participating in cancer prevention studies using text messages. No study has assessed the effectiveness of text messages to increase lung cancer screening uptake. The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary impact of A todo pulmón, a text messaging intervention to increase the uptake of lung cancer screening among Latinos. METHODS: This was a single-arm pilot study with 40 Latinos who were eligible for lung cancer screening but had not completed their annual screening. Participants were recruited using clinic- and community-based efforts. A todo pulmón, available in English and Spanish, was co-developed with a community advisory board and was informed by the Health Belief Model. Participants received A todo pulmón and completed assessments at baseline and Month 3. RESULTS: At baseline, participants had a mean age of 59.1 years [standard deviation (SD) =6.5], 50% were women, 57.5% preferred Spanish, and 52.5% had a high school education or less. More than half of participants (65%) had never heard of lung cancer screening and 72.5% were unaware of their eligibility. Thirty-five participants (87.5%) completed the follow-up assessment at Month 3. The self-reported lung cancer screening rate was 20% (8/40). The electronic health record-verified lung cancer screening rate was 25% (10/40). Thirteen participants (32.5%; 13/40) completed the shared decision-making process. Thirty participants (90.9%, 30/33) reported being satisfied with the intervention and all participants (100%, 33/33) indicated they would recommend it to a friend or family member. CONCLUSIONS: It is feasible to recruit and retain Latinos in a lung cancer screening study. A todo pulmón is acceptable and holds promising preliminary impact among Latinos. Additional testing in a randomized clinical trial is warranted to assess the efficacy of the intervention.