A new study published in Cancer reveals a stark gap in cancer screening rates among the millions of US adults living with disabilities. Researchers from the American Cancer Society analyzed data from the 2021 and 2023 National Health Interview Surveys and found that breast and cervical cancer screening rates consistently declined as disability severity increased — particularly across self-care, vision, mobility, and cognition domains.

The disparities were most dramatic for people with substantial self-care difficulties. Among those without disabilities, the cervical cancer screening rate was roughly 78% — but it dropped to just 37% among those with severe self-care limitations, a gap comparable to having no health insurance at all, according to the study's senior author. But the news wasn't all grim: at-home stool testing for colorectal cancer was actually more prevalent among people with substantial mobility disabilities, suggesting that flexible, accessible screening options could meaningfully close the gap for certain populations.

By the Numbers:

• ~6.02 million adults with disabilities were eligible for breast cancer screening
• ~5.10 million were eligible for cervical cancer screening
• ~11.17 million were eligible for colorectal cancer screening
• Cervical cancer screening was 37% lower among those with substantial self-care disabilities
• Breast cancer screening was 31% lower in the same group
• At-home stool testing was 24% more prevalent among those with substantial mobility disabilities

Why it matters: People with disabilities face the same cancer risks as everyone else but are far less likely to receive life-saving screenings. Expanding at-home and adaptive testing options — and training clinicians to proactively address these gaps — could be a critical step toward health equity for this underserved population.