Patient Navigation Based Care-delivery to Reduce Inequities in Cancer Care Among Immigrants and Refugees: A Commentary on the Successes and the Unmet Needs

As immigrant and refugee populations continue to enter American shores, multiple factors such as lack of health and healthcare knowledge, cultural and linguistic barriers, and obstacles related to the social determinants of health (SDOH) limit the timely uptake of healthcare screenings, particularly cancer screening. Although acculturation experiences are unique to immigrants and refugees, similar to several other minority communities, these groups also face financial and other access-related challenges to cancer screening and treatment. Furthermore, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has likely exacerbated these issues. Therefore, exploring novel methods to reduce cancer related inequities among these populations is critical. Accordingly, in this article, we describe the importance of culturally tailored educational tools and patient navigation to reduce cancer-related disparities. Specifically, this article examines historical aspects of patient navigation, highlights experiences and studies using patient navigation to promote cancer screening and treatment within immigrant and refugee populations and discusses the unmet needs and future directions for patient navigator models along the cancer care continuum.