LGBTQ+ Populations Face Higher Cancer Risk Due to Barriers to Healthcare

1. Elevated Cancer Risk: The American Cancer Society (ACS) has reported that LGBTQ+ populations may have a higher risk of cancer due to various factors such as smoking, excess body weight, heavy alcohol use, and certain cancer-causing infections like HIV, HPV, and hepatitis C.
2. Barriers to Healthcare: These populations face significant barriers to healthcare, including discrimination, lack of provider knowledge, and fear of being denied care based on gender identity or sexual orientation, which can further exacerbate their cancer risk.
3. Presumption-of-Care Gap: Many LGBTQ+ individuals fear being denied care due to their gender identity or sexual orientation, which is a valid concern in nine U.S. states where clinicians and payers can opt out of providing care based on personal or religious beliefs.
4. Lack of Provider Knowledge: Only a quarter of medical students feel confident about the healthcare needs of transgender patients, and nearly a third are not comfortable treating them, contributing to the barriers faced by LGBTQ+ individuals.
5. Call to Action: The ACS report emphasizes the need for initiatives to reduce risk factors and eliminate barriers to care, including the collection of more population-specific data on cancer disparities, incidence, and mortality.