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. 2024 May:140:107494.
doi: 10.1016/j.cct.2024.107494. Epub 2024 Mar 6.

Protocol for a cluster-randomized trial of a school-based skin cancer preventive intervention for adolescents

Yelena P Wu  1 , Tammy K Stump  2 , Jennifer L Hay  3 , David B Buller  4 , Jakob D Jensen  5 , Douglas Grossman  6 , Jincheng Shen  7 , Benjamin A Haaland  8 , Jacey Jones  9 , Kenneth P Tercyak  10
Affiliations

Protocol for a cluster-randomized trial of a school-based skin cancer preventive intervention for adolescents

Yelena P Wu et al. Contemp Clin Trials. 2024 May.

Abstract

Background: Adolescents infrequently use sun protection and engage in intentional tanning more frequently compared to other age groups, leading to increased ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure that heightens skin cancer risk across the lifespan. High schools are therefore an ideal setting for offering skin cancer preventive interventions. Yet, there are limited UVR protection interventions for high school students, especially those that are personalized, tested using randomized designs, and include long-term outcome assessment to determine the durability of intervention effects.

Method: The Sun-safe Habits Intervention and Education (SHINE) cluster-randomized trial will test a novel, personalized intervention that targets high school adolescents' sun protection and tanning behaviors, and tracks their outcomes for up to one year following intervention. Enrolled high schools will be randomized to receive either the personalized SHINE intervention, which includes facial UVR photographs and sun protection action planning, or standard education using publicly available materials. Students in both conditions will receive information about skin cancer, sun protection, and skin self-examination. Outcome variables will include students' sun protection and tanning behaviors and sunburn occurrence. Potential moderators (e.g., race/ethnicity) and mediators (e.g., self-efficacy) will also be assessed and tested.

Conclusions: This trial examines the efficacy of a personalized intervention targeting sun protection and tanning of high school students. The project will lead to new scientific understanding of the theoretical mechanisms underlying outcomes and moderators of the intervention effects, which will inform future intervention tailoring to meet the needs of vulnerable subgroups.

Keywords: Adolescents; Health behavior; Intervention; Prevention; School-based; Skin cancer.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
SHINE study flow diagram
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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