Empowering Latino Communities Through the Colorectal Health Research Champions Model: Enhancing Colorectal Cancer Awareness and Screening Advocacy

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer mortality among Latinos who remain underrepresented in screening and are more often diagnosed at later stages, leading to poorer outcomes. Barriers include low health literacy, lack of insurance, limited access to screening, and cultural mistrust of healthcare and research. To implement the Colorectal Health Research Champion (CHRC) Model to address CRC screening disparities among immigrant Latinos, primarily from Central and South America, residing in Richmond, VA's urban Latino community. The CHRC model integrates evidence-based strategies from Screen to Save (S2S), the National Outreach Network Community Health Educator (NON-CHE) program, and Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center's Community Champion program. Five trained champions conducted peer-to-peer chats on CRC symptoms, risk factors, screening guidelines, healthy behaviors, and clinical trials. Pre and post-surveys were collected from 52 Latino participants. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test assessed changes in knowledge and screening intent. Baseline CRC awareness and screening rates were low. Post-intervention, participants showed notable improvements in recognizing CRC risk factors such as physical inactivity, family history, and the importance of early detection. Participants also demonstrated a better understanding of screening options like the FIT test and expressed willingness to adopt healthier behaviors and pursue screening. However, mistrust and limited understanding of research remained challenges. The CHRC model successfully enhanced CRC knowledge, screening, and early detection awareness among Latinos, while encouraging consideration of clinical trial participation. Success was driven by trusted community champions leveraging social networks, culturally tailored education, addressing research hesitancy, and using flexible outreach strategies.