Integrating preventive lifestyle advice into cancer screening programs: A scoping review

Abstract

Introduction: Cancer is predicted to be the leading cause of death by 2035, resulting in millions of deaths and significant economic losses globally. To address this, integrating cancer preventive lifestyle advice with cancer screening may be a powerful strategy to reduce the risk for cancer by leveraging the heightened attention the cancer screening participants have on their cancer risk at this moment.

Aim: To map the existing knowledge on providing cancer preventive lifestyle advice alongside cancer screening, explore types of interventions delivered, their acceptability and impact, highlighting the preferences and views of screening participants.

Method: A scoping review was conducted using the Population-Concept-Context framework. Searches in three databases and gray literature identified relevant studies. Review selection and characterization were performed by one independent reviewer using eligibility criteria: Population (participants to cancer screening), Concept (cancer preventive lifestyle advice), and Context (cancer screening for breast, colorectal, cervical and lung cancer).

Results: The search strategy returned 112 papers of which 18 papers were retained for analysis. The most researched cancer preventive lifestyle advice was about diet and physical activity, figuring in 13 and 15 studies, respectively. Delivery formats ranged from leaflets to counselling. Over 50% of screening participants accepted receiving this advice. The impact of providing it was mainly positive for diet and conflicting for physical activity.

Conclusion: Extensive literature supports the integration of cancer preventive lifestyle advice alongside cancer screening, as screening participants generally find it acceptable. However, research gaps remain, particularly in broadening lifestyle advice and underexplored screening contexts, notably for cervical and lung cancer.