Making colorectal cancer screening easier and more likely to happen
Official title: Behavioral Economic Approaches for Population-based Colorectal Cancer Screening
Funded at University of Pennsylvania · NIH-11473206 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project uses default options, simpler choices, and direct outreach to help average-risk adults who are overdue complete colorectal cancer screening with colonoscopy or stool tests.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pennsylvania NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Philadelphia, United States) |
| Project start | December 17, 2021 |
| Project end | November 30, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $162,549 |
| NIH project number | 3R01CA258893-05S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11473206 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Average-risk adults who are overdue for colorectal cancer screening and receive care at participating primary care practices (within the University of Pennsylvania Health System) are the ideal candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People who are already up-to-date with screening, those at high genetic or medical risk who need specialized pathways, or patients outside the participating practices are unlikely to benefit directly from this program.
What this research studies
If your primary care practice is part of this program, clinicians will get electronic reminders and you may receive direct outreach inviting you to screen. The program compares a colonoscopy-only pathway to a sequential choice pathway where colonoscopy is offered first and stool testing (FIT) is offered to people who decline or defer. About 30 diverse primary care practices and roughly 20,000 average-risk patients overdue for screening will be followed in a pragmatic, three-year trial. The approach uses behavioral nudges like opt-out framing, simpler choices, and reduced effort to try to increase durable screening rates and reduce racial/ethnic disparities.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, more people like you would complete screening earlier, which could find cancer sooner or prevent cancers and reduce deaths.
How similar studies have gone: Previous outreach and behavioral-nudge studies have increased screening in some settings, but this large pragmatic test of sequential choice versus colonoscopy-only is novel at this scale.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Mehta, Shivan Jatin — University of Pennsylvania
- Study coordinator: Mehta, Shivan Jatin
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Improving colorectal cancer screening and follow-up care.
This study is working to help more people get screened for colorectal cancer and receive the follow-up care they need, especially those who haven't been screened much before, so that everyone can have better access to important health checks and improve their overall health.
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AI/AN Tailoring of a Home-Based Cervical and Colorectal Cancer Screening Program
A tailored, home-based cancer screening program helps AI/AN adults screen for cervical and colorectal cancer from home using self-collection tests and culturally aligned education.
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Bringing colorectal cancer screening to adults 45–54 who haven’t been screened
A grant to help low-income adults aged 45–54 start colorectal cancer screening through the Boston area’s community health centers.
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Increasing follow-up colonoscopies after a positive FIT in community clinics
Aims to help people with abnormal stool tests for colorectal cancer get timely follow-up colonoscopies in safety-net clinics.
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Colorectal cancer screening with real-time imaging that may replace sedated scopes
Researchers are testing a new imaging method called optical coherence tomography (OCT) to spot and treat colon polyps without the need for sedation during a screening colonoscopy.
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Promoting follow-up after abnormal colorectal cancer screening in safety-net systems
A multilevel program will help people in safety-net hospitals complete follow-up colonoscopy after an abnormal stool test.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.