The performance of the Community Health Worker related to the reduction of mortality from oral cancer
Mouth Neoplasms; Mortality; Communityhealth workers; Health Surveys; Spatial Regression
Objective: To identify the sociodemographic risk factors that contributed to malignant neoplasm of lips, oral cavity and pharynx (mouth cancer) mortality in Brazil during 2013 and 2019 using spatial regression. Also to evaluate the contribution of Community Health Workers to the mouth cancer mortality reduction. Methods: It is an Ecological study using data from the National Health Survey from the years 2013 and 2019. Sociodemographic predictors of oral cancer mortality were explored using the regression models: Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Geographically weighted regression (GWR). Results: By the time analyzed there were an increase in mouth cancer mortality in Brazil except for South region, the North and Northeast were more expressive. The GWR regression proved to be an excellent model by explaining the non-stationary spatial relationship of the independent variables with the dependent variable. Conclusion: There were an increase in mortality. The role of the community health workers is essential to contribute to the reduction of oral cancer mortality and to prevent late diagnosis. The community health workers must act not only in regions with more vulnerability but also in regions with greater IDHM.