CClinicalTrials.gg
CompletedNCT02584998Updated Dec 24, 2018Results posted

Reducing Colorectal Cancer Death Through Mailed Outreach Screening

An interventional study of Mailed-FIT and Screening invitation-reminder in Colorectal Cancer, sponsored by VA Office of Research and Development. Completed at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 50 Years to 74 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2018-12-24.

Sponsored by VA Office of Research and Development · Not applicable, Interventional, and Screening

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
782
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
50 Years to 74 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The main study aim is to develop, implement and disseminate a pilot population-based mailed FIT outreach screening program in the Philadelphia VA Medical Center that does not rely on having an office visit, by conducting a proof-of-concept 3-arm parallel-design pragmatic randomized trial to (1) Compare the effects of usual care (UC), screening invitation + reminder (invitation-reminder), or screening invitation + mailed FIT kit + reminder (mailed-FIT); (2) Explore whether the FIT completion rate varies by age or race/ethnicity; and (3) Explore barriers to use of mailed outreach screening for Veterans.

Read the detailed description

This study seeks to establish the foundation to systematically study and improve the delivery and effectiveness of colorectal cancer (CRC) screening in the VA by developing, implementing and disseminating a pilot mailed-FIT screening outreach program that does not rely on having a clinical office visit. The investigators specifically address the need to identify and remediate potential failures to identify and offer screening to eligible Veterans through multilevel interventions. The investigators will also create electronic data linkages to, in future studies, enable evaluation of FIT performance characteristics and help close critical evidence gaps for optimizing screening among Veterans. As this is a pilot study, the focus is to assess feasibility of a population-based screening outreach approach through the development, implementation and dissemination of a mailed FIT outreach program in the Philadelphia VA Medical Center that does not rely on having an office visit.

02

Conditions studied

  • Colorectal Cancer
03

In context

Colorectal Neoplasms

5,599 studies on the registry are indexed under Colorectal Neoplasms; 1,458 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 782 is above the median of 77 across 4,122 interventional studies indexed under Colorectal Neoplasms.

Browse Colorectal Neoplasms studies →

Lead sponsor

VA Office of Research and Development is the lead sponsor of 1,733 studies on the registry; 396 are open to participants now.

Of its 206 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 180 (87%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
50 Years to 74 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

  • The pragmatic trial will include Veterans in southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey who, during the funding year
  • 50 to 75 years old
  • Have received care at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center in the 18-48 months prior to selection for the study but who have not been seen by primary care in the past 18 months prior to selection
  • Due for screening
  • Are asymptomatic for CRC
  • This includes the period during which 3-sample testing was being regularly used at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Have any known gastrointestinal symptoms such as:

    • bleeding
    • unexplained weight loss
    • change in bowel habits
    • family history of CRC
    • inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
    • colectomy using International Classification of Disease (9th and 10th edition) diagnostic code or by self-report.
  • The investigators will also exclude Veterans:

    • with evidence of prior colonoscopy within 10 years
    • sigmoidoscopy within 5 years
    • fecal occult blood test (FOBT)/FIT in the same calendar year
  • The information used to exclude patients will be derived from the electronic queries or chart audits.
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Screening
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
782 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • No intervention
    Usual care

    These patients will continue to receive the current practice at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center (VAMC) of offering screening during an office visit. Other interventions will be embedded within this existing program for a pragmatic approach. However, all participants in the trial, including those in usual care (UC), will receive follow-up of test results and navigation to diagnostic colonoscopy for positive FIT results.

  • Active comparator
    Screening invitation-reminder

    Participants will receive UC and also receive an invitation letter with information about CRC testing. The information will include lay-audience description of screening tests and symptoms that should prompt diagnostic work-up. The packet will have instructions to contact the study team if participants believe they are not eligible and to update the contact information on record. The letter will inform participants that a telephone reminder will follow in 4 weeks from invitation letter if screening is not completed. They will also receive notification of test results and navigation to colonoscopy, if needed. For the purposes of this intervention, Week 1 will be the week the invitation letter was sent (time zero).

    Other: Screening invitation-reminder

  • Active comparator
    Mailed-FIT

    Participants randomized to Mailed-FIT will receive a mailed FIT pre-notification letter (plus a screening invitation) followed by the kit 1 week later. Participants will receive instructions to contact the study team if they believe they are not eligible and to update their contact information. They will be informed that a telephone reminder will follow 4 weeks from notification letter if screening is not completed. Participants who do not return their kit within 4 weeks after their pre-notification letter was mailed will receive a live telephone reminder, followed by 2 additional calls at the end of weeks 5 and 6, if needed. For the purposes of this intervention, Week 1 will be the week the pre-notification letter was sent (time zero).

    Other: Mailed-FIT

Interventions

  • OtherMailed-FIT

    The FIT is analyzed at the Philadelphia VAMC by an auto-analyzer system that provides quantitative results corresponding to the concentration of hemoglobin in the collected sample. Specimens will be analyzed according to manufacturer's instructions to minimize potential degradation of hemoglobin. Results are provided as positive if the hemoglobin concentration is 100ng/dL. The machine records (but does not report) the quantitative results of the hemoglobin concentration in the sample, which we will seek to obtain from the laboratory for future studies.

    Also known as: Fecal Immunochemical Test

  • OtherScreening invitation-reminder

    These patients will continue to receive UC. They will in addition receive an invitation letter with all of the information about CRC testing in the mail-FIT arm

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. The Number of Participants Who Completed the Mailed FIT Test Screening Within 6 Months

    The completion rate of mailed FIT test within 6 months of the mailing of the screening invitation. The absence of FIT result in the electronic medical record (CRPS) will be considered a failure to complete the FIT test

    Time frame: 6 months

Secondary outcomes

  1. The Number of Participants Who Received Any Colorectal Cancer Screening Test in the 6-month Period After Enrollment Into the Study.

    The receipt of any colorectal cancer screening test in the 6-month period after enrollment into the study. For patients in the usual care arm, 6 months was counted from the date of mailed letter to arms 2 and 3 within that block of participants.

    Time frame: 6 months

07

Results

Posted Dec 24, 2018

Participant flow

Participant flow — Overall Study
MilestoneUsual CareScreening Invitation-reminderMailed-FIT
Started260261261
Completed260261261
Not completed000

Outcome measures

PrimaryThe Number of Participants Who Completed the Mailed FIT Test Screening Within 6 Months

The completion rate of mailed FIT test within 6 months of the mailing of the screening invitation. The absence of FIT result in the electronic medical record (CRPS) will be considered a failure to complete the FIT test

Time frame:
6 months
Reported as:
Count of participants · Participants
The Number of Participants Who Completed the Mailed FIT Test Screening Within 6 Months
ParticipantsUsual CareScreening Invitation-reminderMailed-FIT
The Number of Participants Who Completed the Mailed FIT Test Screening Within 6 Months0062
SecondaryThe Number of Participants Who Received Any Colorectal Cancer Screening Test in the 6-month Period After Enrollment Into the Study.

The receipt of any colorectal cancer screening test in the 6-month period after enrollment into the study. For patients in the usual care arm, 6 months was counted from the date of mailed letter to arms 2 and 3 within that block of participants.

Time frame:
6 months
Reported as:
Count of participants · Participants
The Number of Participants Who Received Any Colorectal Cancer Screening Test in the 6-month Period After Enrollment Into the Study.
ParticipantsUsual CareScreening Invitation-reminderMailed-FIT
The Number of Participants Who Received Any Colorectal Cancer Screening Test in the 6-month Period After Enrollment Into the Study.152068
Statistical analysis
  • Usual Care vs Screening Invitation-reminder vs Mailed-FIT · Chi-squared · p = <0.001

Adverse events

Collected over Adverse events were collected during the same time frame as the primary outcome, which was 6 months from the time of the mailed screening invitation in arms 2 and 3.. Non-serious events are listed at a 5% frequency threshold.

Adverse event summary by group
GroupDeathsSeriousOther
Usual Care1/260 (0.4%)0/260 (0%)0/260 (0%)
Screening Invitation-reminder0/261 (0%)0/261 (0%)0/261 (0%)
Mailed-FIT0/261 (0%)0/261 (0%)0/261 (0%)

Baseline characteristics

Age, Continuous
Age, Continuous(years)Usual CareScreening Invitation-reminderMailed-FITTotal
Mean61 ± 7.060 ± 7.061 ± 6.561 ± 6.8
Sex: Female, Male
Sex: Female, Male(Participants)Usual CareScreening Invitation-reminderMailed-FITTotal
Female87722
Male252254254760
Race/Ethnicity, Customized
Race/Ethnicity, Customized(Participants)Usual CareScreening Invitation-reminderMailed-FITTotal
Race — Black162149160471
Race — White859788270
Race — Other34512
Race — Unknown1011829
Region of Enrollment
Region of Enrollment(Participants)Usual CareScreening Invitation-reminderMailed-FITTotal
United States260261261782
08

Study locations

1 site
  • Corporal Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA
    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
09

References and documents

Publications

  • Goldshore MA, Mehta SJ, Fletcher W, Tzanis G, Doubeni CA, Paulson EC. An RCT of Fecal Immunochemical Test Colorectal Cancer Screening in Veterans Without Recent Primary Care. Am J Prev Med. 2020 Jul;59(1):41-48. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2020.02.014. PubMed 32564804 ↗

Study documents

  • Protocol and statistical analysis plan · Dec 22, 2015

Documents are hosted by the registry — open the source record to download them.

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

10

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Dec 24, 2018, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
11

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT02584998
Lead sponsor
VA Office of Research and Development
Collaborators
University of Pennsylvania
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Oct 23, 2015
Start date
Jan 1, 2017
Primary completion
Jun 12, 2017
Completion
Dec 30, 2017
Results posted
Dec 24, 2018
Last update
Dec 24, 2018

Study contacts

E. Carter Paulson, MD MSCE
principal investigator · Corporal Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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