Rollins Research Review: Cancer Genomic Services in Latino Communities, PFAS in Pesticides, and the Sustainability of Water Filtration Interventions

By Shelby Crosier

This month, Rollins researchers authored papers on a wealth of public health topics. Find summaries of a few highlights below.

Title:Assessing Interventions Promoting the Uptake of Cancer-Related Genomic Services Within the Latino Community: A Scoping Review Using the RE-AIM Framework

Journal: Cancer Medicine

Rollins Authors: Dayanna Ramirez Leon; Yue Guan, PhD

Important Takeaways:

• Cancer is the leading cause of death for Latino people in the U.S., but they are less likely than non-Hispanic white people to access cancer genomic services (CGS) that can help them manage their cancer risk and reduce cancer-related mortality.
• A Rollins team reviewed past interventions promoting CGS for Latino populations to learn how they adapted to fit community needs and applied principles of the RE-AIM (reach, efficacy/effectiveness, adoption, implementation, maintenance) framework for program implementation.
• Previous interventions included components of RE-AIM to varying degrees and had varying success. The most common adaptations to fit the community were language translation services.
• More work must be done to understand how culturally focused interventions may help increase the number of Latino people using CGS in the U.S.

Title:Invited Perspective: The Far Reach of PFAS—Inert Ingredients and Adjuvants in Pesticide Formulations

Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives

Rollins Authors: Neha Sehgal; Dana Boyd Barr, PhD; Stephanie Eick, PhD

Important Takeaways:

• In this invited perspective, Rollins researchers discussed pesticides as a route of exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which can have adverse health effects.
• To date, PFAS have not been considered in efforts to regulate agricultural and domestic pesticides.
• The authors recommend that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers including the health hazards associated with mixtures of chemicals in pesticide formations when performing risk assessments.

Title:Assessing the Sustained Effects of a Water Filter Intervention: A 30-Month Longitudinal Study in Rwamagana, Rwanda

Journal: PLOS Water

Rollins Authors: Matthew Freeman, PhD; Howard Chang, PhD; Thomas Clasen, PhD

Important Takeaways:

• Interventions focused on treatment and safe storage of household water improve water quality and reduce disease in areas that don’t have consistent safe water access, but there have not been many studies about their sustainability over time.
• A research team conducted an intervention which gave filters and water storage tanks to households in 30 Rwandan villages, then followed those households for 30 months.
• The majority of households kept using their water filters for all 30 months, and most were in good condition and being used, although use of the storage tanks declined over time. Water contamination did not get any worse over the course of the study.
• This shows that similar interventions are sustainable across longer periods of time.