UICC World Cancer Congress 2006

Objective: Despite evidence that regular screening for colorectal cancer (CRC) reduces incidence and mortality, more than 41 million Americans aged 50 years or older have not been screened appropriately for this disease. Screen for Life: National Colorectal Cancer Action Campaign (SFL) is a federally-funded initiative promoting awareness of CRC and the importance of screening for adults aged 50 years or older.

Methods: SFL uses a variety of communication strategies, including television public service announcements (PSAs) in both English and Spanish. SFL television PSAs are developed using the Health Communication Process endorsed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which has four stages: (1) planning and strategy development; (2) developing and pretesting concepts, messages, and materials; (3) implementing the program; and (4) assessing effectiveness and making refinements. While the stages of the Health Communication Process are universal, subtle changes are needed to adapt study protocols when testing Spanish PSA concepts.

Results: Through October 2005, SFL television PSAs have been broadcast 167,536 times in the United States, generating nearly 2.6 billion audience impressions (the number of times viewers have seen the PSAs), worth more than $19 million in donated airtime. Based on airplay, SFL ranked in the top 1% of TV PSA campaigns tracked by A.C. Nielsen during most of 2005.