Using Facebook to Improve Participation in Colorectal Cancer Screening: Protocol for a Cluster Randomized Controlled...

Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening participation in Canada is lower than the national target, and interventions designed to increase screening participation are generally expensive and have limited impact. Social media can be used as an innovative strategy to increase participation in cancer screening, particularly Facebook (FB), as it is the most popular social media platform for the population eligible for CRC screening.

The aim of this study is to report on the protocol for a pragmatic cluster randomized controlled trial that will test the effectiveness of CRC social media advertisements on user engagement and screening intention.

The trial will target FB users aged 45 to 64 years who reside in the province of Ontario, Canada. There are 521 forward sortation areas (FSAs) in Ontario, and the randomization will be done at this level using the first 3 digits of the postal code. Rural and urban FSAs will be randomly allocated to one of the 6 study arms. In 4 arms, FB users will all receive one of 4 social media advertisements developed in previous studies, while in the fifth arm, a tailored strategy by sex will be tested. In the final arm, FB users will not be shown any advertisements. If users click on any of the advertisements, they will be directed to a webpage with more information on screening and a place to pledge their intention to screen for CRC. The study's primary outcome will be tested as a count measure, defined as the number of people per FSA who pledge their intention to screen for CRC. User engagement metrics, including impressions, link clicks, cost per link click, link click-through rate, and user comments, will be tracked across the 5 trial arms with advertisements shown.

This cluster randomized controlled trial will provide evidence on the use of FB as a tool for delivering CRC screening messages and influencing screening intentions. The comparison of message types within a fixed campaign budget could identify which approaches promote user engagement in both urban and rural populations.

This study has the potential to show that social media offers a cost-efficient, scalable approach to promote CRC screening. This approach is adaptable to other cancer screening programs and could provide evidence-based digital strategies for the promotion of cancer screening.

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04296630; https://tinyurl.com/5y5k7yjb.

DERR1-10.2196/86829.