Identifying and revealing gaps in health disparities amongst pelvic cancer patients: a grounded-theory meta-analysis approach

PURPOSE: Social determinants of health create barriers for pelvic cancer patients, and including qualitative measures in clinical research is imperative to assess all variables that contribute to rates of pelvic cancer. The aim of this study was to determine the barriers that pelvic cancer patients face in accessing healthcare, and to identify gaps in the literature that may direct future research. We also aim to advise healthcare professionals and clinical researchers on the importance of health disparities and inclusive patient education. METHODS: We used a grounded-theory thematic meta-analysis approach in our research to identify health disparities among pelvic cancer patients. We generated primary codes from all aspects of socioeconomic status, which served as PubMed boolean search terms to gather all literature pertaining to factors that impact healthcare access amongst pelvic cancer patients. We developed secondary codes as themes from the initial results for further focus on clinical experiences. We developed tertiary codes identifying intersections between clinical care themes specific to transgender healthcare access. RESULTS: Our total search for health disparities in pelvic cancer resulted in 348 papers which included cancer (41), physician education (35), race and ethnicity (29), surgical procedures (26), socioeconomic status (23), LGBTQIA+ (22), sexually transmitted diseases (20), diagnostic screenings (15), female reproductive health (15), sex and gender (15), transgender and gender non-binary health (11), imaging (10), robotics (9), ectomies (9), radiotherapies (9), sexual health and sexual education (8), patient education (7), physician surgical training (6), mental health (6), language (6), contraceptives (5), smoking (5), quality of life (3), adolescents (3), medical therapies (2), pelvic inflammatory disease (2), histology (2), hormones (2), pain management (1), and patient navigation (1). In decreasing order of literature papers found, this shows the paucity of research in topics about social determinants of health and post-clinical appointments. Most importantly, we found that lack of physician education on these topics, many cases of socio-cultural bias, and an absence of patient navigation that plays a role in the delay or absence of healthcare access for pelvic cancer patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our work emphasizes the impact healthcare providers and policies have for healthcare access and delivery of care. Our future research will find ways to address the health disparities that pelvic cancer patients face, develop effective strategies in diagnosing and treating pelvic cancer, and inform healthcare professionals and medical curricula on the importance of social determinants of health to create more inclusive patient-centered care.

Author dc:creator

• Filimonov, Anastasia

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Wisco, Jonathan

• Oncology

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/2144/45548

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:open.bu.edu:2144/45548