We also provided clear sign-posting, including a directional SP600125 prompt and written statements indicating where more detailed information could be found [35]. Health literacy, EU and NHS guidelines suggest vernacular rather than formal language should be used where possible in cancer communication materials [10], [12], [13] and [14]. These guidelines also recommend that information should

be written in short sentences and bullet point lists. Evidence from cognitive psychology suggests this reduces the cognitive burden of information by enabling participants to ‘chunk’ information and retain more in short-term memory [36] and [37]. This is particularly important for individuals with poor basic skills due to the strong association between health literacy and cognitive ability [38]. The EU

guidelines also suggest that the information materials should be appealing to the recipient [13]. In response to this, we chose to use a blue background because experimental evidence has demonstrated that it invokes AZD2281 nmr a lower disgust response [39], a frequently cited barrier to CRC screening participation [40], [41] and [42]. In line with a framework for the evaluation of patient information materials [43], we report on the readability and comprehensibility of the supplementary gist-based leaflet described above. We recruited 28 participants via mail from two community organisations. Social Action for Health (SAfH) is a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) involved in health promotion within disadvantaged areas of London. ContinYou is an adult education organisation that works with children and adults in deprived communities. We also recruited participants from our Departmental research panel. Recruitment sites were Adenosine specifically chosen in order to target and include the perspective of individuals who may struggle to access and use health information due to limited health literacy and numeracy skills. A number of barriers exist

to the recruitment of such individuals, and we were mindful of these in our approach [44]. We used a mixed-methods, user-testing approach to assess the comprehensibility of the information leaflet [45], [46] and [47]. In rounds of approximately 8–10 people at a time, we identified problems with the gist-based leaflet. Both quantitative (face to face administered questionnaire) and qualitative (brief semi-structured interview) methods were used to achieve this purpose. Re-testing assessed the impact of revisions on a new set of participants, and was repeated as necessary (see Fig. 1). Inclusion criteria were age 45–59 years (i.e. before the age at which CRC screening is offered in England) and no previous diagnosis of CRC. Exclusion criteria were not being able to speak or read English, previous CRC screening, and severe cognitive impairment. The study was approved by the UCL research ethics committee (Reference: 2247/002).