Social needs and health‐related quality of life among African American cancer survivors: Results from the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors study

Background Social needs may affect cancer survivors' health‐related quality of life (HRQOL) above and beyond sociodemographic and cancer‐related factors. The purpose of this study was to estimate associations between social needs and HRQOL. Methods Results included data from 1754 participants in the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors cohort, a population‐based study of African American survivors of breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancer. Social needs included items related to food insecurity, utility shutoffs, housing instability, not getting health care because of cost or a lack of transportation, and perceptions of neighborhood safety. HRQOL was measured with the validated Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–General (FACT‐G). Linear regression models controlled for demographic, socioeconomic, and cancer‐related factors. Results More than one‐third of the survivors (36.3%) reported social needs including 17.1% of survivors reported 2 or more. The prevalence of social needs ranged from 14.8% for food insecurity to 8.9% for utility shutoffs. FACT‐G score differences associated with social needs were –12.2 (95% confidence interval [CI] to –15.2 to –9.3) for not getting care because of a lack of transportation, –11.3 (95% CI, –14.2 to –8.4) for housing instability, –10.1 (95% CI, –12.7 to –7.4) for food insecurity, –9.8 (95% CI, –12.7 to –6.9) for feeling unsafe in the neighborhood, –8.6 (95% CI, –11.7 to –5.4) for utility shutoffs, and –6.7 (95% CI, –9.2 to –4.1) for not getting care because of cost. Conclusions Social needs were common in this cohort of African American cancer survivors and were associated with clinically significant differences in HRQOL. Clinical oncology care and survivorship care planning may present opportunities to screen for and address social needs to mitigate their impact on survivors' HRQOL. More than one‐third of African American cancer survivors experience social needs. Social needs, particularly those related to neighborhood safety, transportation, and housing stability, are associated with dramatically lower health‐related quality of life.