(Press-News.org) Original Research
Background and Goal: This study examines if gaining housing increased rates of colorectal and breast cancer screening in a cohort of veterans who experience homelessness.
Study Approach: Researchers reviewed ten years of Veterans Health Administration (VA) records (2011-2021). They identified all veterans who were homeless and overdue for colorectal or breast cancer screening at their first VA clinic visit in the most recent year (the “index” visit). Housing status was then tracked for 24 months after that visit. Researchers compared screening rates between veterans who gained housing and those who remained homeless, adjusting the analysis for different factors, including age, health conditions, and the VA facility where care was received.
Main Results: 117,619 veterans experiencing homelessness aged 50-75 years who were eligible but not up-to-date for colorectal screening, and 6,517 women experiencing homelessness aged 50-75 years who were eligible but not up-to-date for breast cancer screening were included in the analysis.
Nearly one-half the colorectal cohort (49.0%) and breast cohort (47.5%) gained housing in the subsequent 24 months.
Veterans who gained housing were more likely to undergo colorectal screening and more likely to undergo breast cancer screening than veterans who continued to experience homelessness. Both of these differences were highly significant.
Why It Matters: Gaining housing may facilitate screening by promoting access to communication, reducing competing priorities, and decreasing vulnerability to external forces such as encampment clearing or theft.
Is Gaining Housing Associated With Higher Rates of Cancer Screening Among US Veterans Experiencing Homelessness?
Hannah Decker, MD, MAS, et al
Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, University of California, San Francisco, California
TEMPORARY LINK
END
Study finds veterans experiencing homelessness who gain housing are more likely to get colorectal and breast cancer screenings
Is gaining housing associated with higher rates of cancer screening among US veterans experiencing homelessness?
2025-07-28
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Body fat percentage beats BMI in predicting 15-year mortality risk among U.S. adults ages 20 to 49
2025-07-28
Background and Goal: Although body mass index (BMI) is widely used in clinics as the standard measure of body composition, it can potentially misclassify muscular individuals as overweight and miss cases of "normal-weight obesity," masking serious metabolic and heart disease risks. This study examined BMI vs body fat percentage for 15-year mortality risk among adults aged 20-49 years.
Study Approach: Researchers from the University of Florida analyzed data from 4,252 participants in the 1999-2004 National Health and Nutrition ...
Umbrella review summarizes family physicians’ experiences with clinical integration
2025-07-28
Background and Goal: Clinical integration involves coordinating ongoing health care services across health professionals, facilities, and support systems to meet patient care needs. Researchers aimed to map out barriers and facilitators perceived by family physicians in clinical integration to guide future intervention development.
Study Approach: Researchers examined systematic review studies published from 2010 to 2022. Researchers adopted a “best-fit framework approach” to organize findings into themes and subthemes. They then validated the framework with another 21 reviews published between 2022 and 2024.
Main Results: ...
HEAL protocol addresses human trafficking in Brazilian primary care
2025-07-28
Primary care is often the first or only contact point for human trafficking survivors. In the Brazilian state of Pernambuco, professionals from the health, social services, and justice sectors collaborated to adapt and translate the U.S.-based HEAL Trafficking Protocol Toolkit to the Brazilian context. The toolkit equips health care professionals with the knowledge and tools to identify, and respond to, potential victims of human trafficking in a trauma-informed and patient-centered manner. Since September 2023, the Brazilian Protocol Toolkit page on the HEAL website has received ...
Study finds uneven progress toward diabetes goals across patient groups in the enhanced primary care diabetes program
2025-07-28
Background and Goal: The Enhanced Primary Care Diabetes (EPCD) model is a nurse-led care delivery model that leverages multidisciplinary support to improve diabetes care quality in primary care settings. This study assessed whether patients of different racial and ethnic groups benefited equally.
Study Approach: The authors reviewed health records for 1,749 adults aged 18 to 75 years from 13 family medicine and internal medicine practices in Mayo Clinic Rochester who joined the EPCD program from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2020. They ...
Veterans experiencing homelessness who secure housing more likely to get cancer health screenings
2025-07-28
Editorial
Background: This editorial reviews Decker et al’s study of more than 100,000 veterans experiencing homelessness who were overdue for colorectal or breast cancer screening. About 57,000 secured housing during a 24-month window and were more than twice as likely to get screened after doing so.
Editorial Stance: The author calls the findings from Decker et al a “rare, measurable improvement” in care for people who have experienced homelessness. Although causality cannot be claimed from this observational work, the author praises the ...
Family physicians improve rural maternity outcomes but those in high-need states need support
2025-07-28
Background and Goal: This study explores the geographic distribution of family physicians providing maternity care and identifies opportunities for family physicians to expand access to maternity care.
Study Approach: The study merged county-level counts of OB-GYNs, certified nurse-midwives, and hospitals offering obstetric services from the 2021–2022 HRSA Area Health Resource File with 2013–2021 American Board of Family Medicine data on family physicians who reported delivering babies.
Researchers used ...
Tip sheet summaries Annals of Family Medicine July/August 2025
2025-07-28
Editorial
Veterans Experiencing Homelessness Who Secure Housing More Likely to Get Cancer Health Screenings
Background: This editorial reviews Decker et al’s study of more than 100,000 veterans experiencing homelessness who were overdue for colorectal or breast cancer screening. About 57,000 secured housing during a 24-month window and were more than twice as likely to get screened after doing so.
Editorial Stance: The author calls the findings from Decker et al a “rare, measurable improvement” in care for ...
TFLN-based RGB multiplexer for energy-efficient laser beam scanning
2025-07-28
As technology advances, photonic systems are gaining ground over traditional electronics, using light to transmit and process information more efficiently. One such optical system is laser beam scanning (LBS), where laser beams are rapidly steered to scan, sense, or display information. This technology is used in applications ranging from barcode scanners at grocery stores to laser projectors in light shows. To process a wider range of signals or enable full-color output, these systems utilize multiplexers that merge the red, green, and blue (RGB) laser beams into a single beam.
Traditionally, this was achieved ...
On a Florida bombing range, endangered woodpeckers get a second chance
2025-07-28
Florida’s Avon Park bombing range is teeming with life. Over 40 at-risk species occupy this 106,000-acre expanse used by the U.S. Air Force for training exercises.
Conservation biologists from Michigan State University are using the range to test something other than weapons: innovative strategies to save threatened species.
Using decades’ worth of monitoring data, researchers are looking back through time to understand the outcome of interventions designed to rescue a population of imperiled red-cockaded woodpeckers.
What they’ve found is a promising story of success.
Their results, published ...
Study identifies gene clusters in rhizobia linked to robust legume growth
2025-07-28
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — In a new study, scientists used nearly every tool in their toolkit — genomics, transcriptomics, greenhouse experiments and advanced statistical methods — to gain new insight into the complex chemical interactions that take place in underground root nodules, where legumes like soybeans exchange vital nutrients with soil microbes called rhizobia.
Reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, their study identified clusters of rhizobial genes that appear to move rapidly through bacterial populations and drive greater plant biomass ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
World’s leading medical journal details the climate emergency
GLP-1 drugs effective for weight loss, but more independent studies needed
Researchers uncover previously unexplored details of mosquito’s specialized detection mechanisms
Stem cell therapy linked to lower risk of heart failure after a heart attack
The NHS is reaching a crisis point in consultant recruitment, new report warns
UNM research suggests Halloween fireballs could signal increased risk of cosmic impact or airburst in 2032 and 2036
Biochar’s hidden helper: Dissolved organic matter boosts lead removal from polluted water
Sunlight turns everyday fabrics into ocean microfibers, new study finds
Antibiotics linked to lower risk of complications after obstetric tear
Rapid blood pressure fluctuations linked to early signs of brain degeneration in older adults
How microbes control mammalian cell growth
Emergency department pilot program serves rural families
Amid renewable-energy boom, study explores options for electricity market
Study finds improvement in knee pain with exercise and physical therapy
Researchers uncover key mechanism behind chemotherapy-induced nerve damage
Mayo Clinic researchers find enhancing the body’s ‘first responder’ cells may boost immune therapy for cancer
Secret to a long life? In bowhead whales, a protein repairs damaged DNA
MIT study: Identifying kids who need help learning to read isn’t as easy as A, B, C
Plant biomass substance helps combat weeds
Veterans with epilepsy after traumatic brain injury may have higher mortality rates
Who is more likely to lose vision due to high brain pressure?
Scripps Research professor awarded $3.2 million to advance type 1 diabetes research
Anna Wuttig wins Bayer Foundation Early Excellence in Science Award
Electric vehicles outperform gasoline cars in lifetime environmental impact
Kilimanjaro has lost 75 percent of its natural plant species over the last century
Spider web “decorations” may help pinpoint location of captured prey
Ancient tombs reveal the story of Chinese history
1 in 3 university students surveyed from a Parisian suburb report being unable to access desired food, with this food insecurity associated with academic dropout
Researchers uncover oldest 3D burrow systems in Hubei's Shibantan Biota
Discovery of a new principle: chiral molecules adhere to magnets
[Press-News.org] Study finds veterans experiencing homelessness who gain housing are more likely to get colorectal and breast cancer screeningsIs gaining housing associated with higher rates of cancer screening among US veterans experiencing homelessness?