West Virginia consistently ranks among the top five states with the highest prevalence of
poor health behaviors. In 2020, West Virginia ranked highest in the nation for smoking and
depression among adults; second highest in the nation for fair/poor health, obesity, physical
disability, and cancer; and fifth highest in physical inactivity. Only 76.5% of West Virginia women
aged 50-74 had a mammogram in the past two years according to 2020 statistics, and only 86.3%
of West Virginia women had an appropriate cervical cancer screening. Cancer is the second
leading cause of death for both West Virginia men and women, which had the highest crude cancer
mortality rate in the nation (264.8 per 100,000) in 2020 according to National Center for Health
Statistics provisional data. From 2014 to 2018, prostate cancer was the most diagnosed cancer in
men, accounting for one-fifth of all male cancers. Breast cancer continues to be the most diagnosed
cancer among females, accounting for a quarter of all cancers diagnosed in West Virginia women.
Lung cancer was the leading cause of cancer-related death among West Virginia males, and breast
cancer was the second leading cause of cancer-related death among West Virginia females.
To address this cancer burden, the West Virginia Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening
Program (BCCSP) works with the National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program, the National
Program of Cancer Registries, the West Virginia University Cancer Institute, the Mountains of
Hope Cancer Coalition, the Colorectal Cancer Control Program, and various other organizations
including over 400 combined health systems and clinics to reach and provide screening and
diagnostic treatment services to low-income uninsured and underinsured women. The BCCSP
works collaboratively with these partners to identify and reach the state’s most vulnerable women,
including racial and ethnic minorities, LGBTQ, low literacy, women in rural areas, medically
underserved, and people with disabilities, to set and achieve health equity goals and increase
screening among these groups. The BCCSP has worked with these partners for over 30 years to
increase screening and ensure early detection of breast and cervical cancer to reduce the overall
burden of cancer in West Virginia. Enhanced cross-sector data sharing, education and outreach,
and evidence-based interventions (EBI) will be key to increased screening over the next five years.
As cancer is such a serious problem in West Virginia, it is imperative to have information
that can be used to help reduce the cancer burden. The West Virginia Cancer Registry (WVCR) is
a statewide population-based registry that collects demographic, tumor, and treatment information
on all cases of cancer occurring in the state. This information is used to monitor trends, plan for
and evaluate the impact of cancer control programs, allocate health resources, respond to reports
of suspected community cancer clusters, and conduct epidemiologic studies. It is critical to the
success of the WVCR that a network of cancer prevention and control partners be maintained to
ensure widespread use of WVCR data. The state’s Comprehensive Cancer Control Program
(CCCP) has been instrumental in building and maintaining such a network.
The BCCSP and WVCR are committed to continuing the established partnership with the
CCCP. These cancer programs will lead cancer prevention and control efforts by collaborating
with other chronic disease programs to maximize integrated strategies and partnerships to prevent
cancer and other chronic diseases, assist with disease management, and implement evidence-based
approaches to maximize program effectiveness and support qualify of life in West Virginia