Abstract Purpose: Breast cancer is the second most common cancer among women in the United States, affecting about 1 in 8 women (13%) over their lifetime. Hispanic women—especially those living in rural and border regions—experience lower screening rates and are more likely to be diagnosed at later stages. This is often due to systemic barriers, including limited access to preventive care, low income, limited education, and a lack of health insurance. The BEST (Breast Cancer Education, Screening, and NavigaTion) Program is a comprehensive, bilingual, culturally tailored, and evidence-based intervention designed to reduce disparities among uninsured women in El Paso and counties in West and South Texas. Program Overview: Initiated in 2014 with funding from the Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT), the BEST Program (PP130068) began in El Paso and Hudspeth counties. Subsequent expansions, BEST 2 (PP180003) (2018–2021) and BEST 3 (PP210004) (2021–present), extended services to additional counties and enhanced outreach and navigation strategies. Methods: This program serves uninsured or underinsured women aged 50–75 years residing in Texas who are not up to date with breast cancer screening. The program provides education, outreach, navigation, screening, and diagnostic services across target counties. The programs’ core objectives include 1) delivering culturally tailored, theory-based breast cancer education. 2) conducting outreach through community health workers and social media platforms. 3) offering no-cost mammography and diagnostics to eligible women. 4) expanding the mammography network using clinic-based and community-based strategies. 5) providing patient navigation for screening, diagnosis, access to primary care, insurance enrollment, and cancer treatment. Results: To date, 9,052 women have enrolled in the program, and 6,795 have completed a mammogram. More than 3,000 participants required diagnostic follow-up, which included 1,060 diagnostic mammograms, 1,660 ultrasounds, and 280 biopsies. The program has achieved an 80% screening completion rate and a 96% diagnostic follow-up completion rate. A total of 77 breast cancer cases have been diagnosed, and all patients were successfully navigated into treatment. Conclusion: The BEST Program demonstrates the effectiveness of a culturally tailored, evidence-based intervention in increasing breast cancer screening and early detection among uninsured women in underserved Texas communities. Its success highlights the importance of community-based education and navigation strategies in reducing cancer disparities in Hispanic and border populations. Citation Format: Priyanka Dadha, Astrid Kenya. Hernandez, Pracheta Matharasi, Jennifer Molokwu. The BEST (Breast Cancer Education, Screening, and NavigaTion) Program: Addressing breast cancer disparities among uninsured women in West and South Texas abstract. In: Proceedings of the 18th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities; 2025 Sep 18-21; Baltimore, MD. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2025;34(9 Suppl):Abstract nr A150.
Dadha et al. (Thu,) studied this question.