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Systematic Review
This review aimed to determine the effectiveness of interventions in improving men’s uptake of and intention to undergo screening, including interventions using information and communication technology and a male-sensitive approach.
This review included 58 studies. Most studies were on prostate cancer (k=31) and HIV (k=11) screening. Three studies were on colorectal cancer. Most of the studies had low methodologic quality (79.3%) and after excluding them from the analysis, one study found that educational intervention (which was also male-sensitive) was effective in improving men’s intention to screen (risk ratio=1.36, 95% CI=1.23, 1.50, k=1) and partner educational intervention increased men’s screening uptake (risk ratio=1.77, 95% CI=1.48, 2.12, k=1). Video-based educational interventions reduced prostate cancer screening uptake (risk ratio=0.89, 95%CI=0.80, 0.99, k=1) but web-based interventions did not change men’s screening intention or uptake.
This review highlights the need to conduct more robust studies to provide conclusive evidence on the effectiveness of different interventions to improve men’s screening behavior.