Prostate cancer, the most common cancer in men, has a 60% greater incidence in African Americans than Whites, and mortality is more than double. Despite a steady decline in mortality since the early 1990s, the disparity in mortality persists, heightening the urgency of efforts to address the issue. The literature and past research by the study team inform the current proposal. Notably, community organizations are actively engaged in promoting prostate cancer prevention and have a great deal of potential to change knowledge, beliefs, intentions and behaviors, yet shortfalls exist in promoting informed decision-making. Screening rates for prostate cancer are also high, greater than 50% nationally. In light of the controversy regarding prostate cancer screening, these data point to the pressing need for research about effective approaches to enhance the likelihood that men who are screened do so in an informed manner. The present study aims to develop and assess an educational outreach strategy promoting increased knowledge about prostate cancer and informed decision-making about screening. The strategy will be designed for use by organizations working in community settings. Educational content will draw on interviews with clinicians, health educators and survivors with experience in community outreach. The strategy will include an informed decision-making process as well as survivor testimonies. A multi-method assessment of program effects on knowledge, beliefs, decision satisfaction and screening intentions will combine qualitative pre-testing and a quantitative quasi-experiment in community settings. The study seeks to assess the potential to promote informed prostate cancer decision-making in community-based outreach programs, as well as the unique contributions of survivor educators to program effects. The study builds upon past community-based participatory research on the topic by the Principal Investigator. It will be designed and implemented as an initiative of the Prostate Cancer Community Partnership, a consortium of community, academic, and clinical organizations working under the auspices of the Program to Eliminate Cancer Disparities at the Siteman Cancer Center. The educational strategy proposed in this application is intended to be a model for use by community organizations. This exploratory research aims to lead to further grant applications for funding by the NCI to conduct a larger quasi- experiment, followed by a field trial of the educational strategy within the context of a survivor-led prostate cancer outreach module. The work is consistent with NCI priorities to support community-based participatory research and to reduce cancer disparities. ? ? ?
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