Federal Housing Assistance and Stage at Cancer Diagnosis Among Older Adults in the US

Is there an association between receipt of federal housing assistance and stage at cancer diagnosis among older adults in the US?In this cohort study of 52 532 individuals receiving housing assistance who were propensity score matched to individuals receiving no assistance, those who received housing assistance were significantly less likely to receive a diagnosis of distant-stage breast cancer (6.7% vs 7.2%), colorectal cancer (22.2% vs 23.3%), and non–small cell lung cancer (51.4% vs 54.2%).These findings suggest that policies designed to improve housing security are associated with reduced odds of late-stage diagnosis and may be an important step toward reducing cancer disparities.

Corresponding Author: Craig Evan Pollack, MD, MSc, MHS, Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 601 N Caroline St, 7th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21287 (cpollac2@jhmi.edu).

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