Chinatown Patient Navigation (PN) 2.0

The Chinatown Patient Navigation (PN) Program is a National Cancer Institute (NCI)–funded research study that focuses on increasing cancer screening and enhancing cancer care for the residents of Chicago's Greater Chinatown area. The program first launched in 2013 and navigated 749 women for their breast and cervical cancer screenings. With this success and lessons learned, the program received a five-year renewal from the NCI in 2020 to scale patient navigation in the Greater Chinatown area ("PN 2.0"). The PN 2.0 Program will implement strategies and tools to support the coordination and integration of Social Determinants of Health (SDoH)–related efforts across community oncology and community social service settings. The PN 2.0 program will continue to tailor a culturally appropriate program for Chicago's Chinatown community, while working toward health systems change to increase access to cancer screening, reduce time to diagnostic resolution and reduce time to treatment initiation.

Learn more about this study at ClinicalTrials.gov.

Program Impact

Over 1,300 participants have enrolled since our establishment in 2013, including 749 women from 2013-2019 and 412 women and 187 men from 2021 to the present. Between 2013 and 2019, we increased mammogram screening rates from 35.9 to 72.0 per 100 low-income female residents aged 50-64. Notably, the uninsured rate among our previous participants decreased from 36.9 percent to 6.6 percent. Currently, more than half of our participants have less than 12 years of education, a household income of less than $14,999, and rely on Medicaid and/or Medicare.