Text Messaging Versus Postal Reminders to Improve Participation in a Colorectal Cancer Screening Program: Randomized...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Preventive Medicine
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Mobile phone SMS text message reminders have shown moderate success in enhancing participation in colorectal cancer screening programs.
• Assessing SMS effectiveness as a replacement for postal reminders in fecal immunochemical test-based screening is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of SMS text messages versus traditional postal reminders for colorectal cancer screening.
• To determine the impact of a recovery strategy involving a second postal reminder for non-responders in the SMS group.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial was conducted with individuals aged 50-69 years.
• The intervention group received SMS reminders, while the control group received postal reminders.
• Participation rates were analyzed using logistic regression, adjusting for confounders.

Main Results:

• Initial SMS reminders led to lower participation (17.2%) compared to postal reminders (21.9%).
• A recovery strategy with a second postal reminder increased SMS group participation to 23%.
• The final analysis showed higher participation in the intervention group (29.3%) versus the control group (26.5%) after the recovery strategy.

Conclusions:

• Replacing postal reminders with SMS alone decreased participation.
• A dual-reminder strategy (SMS followed by postal) significantly improved colorectal cancer screening uptake.
• Further research is needed to optimize reminder timing and frequency for maximum participation without being intrusive.