Received: 6 May 2024 - Accepted: 21 August 2024 DOI: 10.1002/wjs.12338 ORIGINAL SCIENTIFIC REPORT Meaningful engagement of people living with cancer: Leveraging breast cancer survivors in a stigma reduction intervention in Tanzania Lily Gutnik 1 | Elizabeth F. Msoka 2,3,4 | Sindhu Dwarampudi 1 | Taylor Hollis 1 | M. Chandler McLeod 1 | Jayme E. Locke 1 | Isabel Scarinci 5 | Gabrielle B. Rocque 6 | Alex Mremi 2,3,4 | Furuha Serventi 2,3,4 | Blandina T. Mmbaga 2,3,4 1 Department of Surgery, UAB Heersink School of Medicine, Birmingham, Alabama, USA 2 Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Moshi, Tanzania 3 Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre, Moshi, Tanzania 4 Kilimanjaro Clinical Research Institute, Moshi, Tanzania 5 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA 6 Department of Hematology and Oncology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA Correspondence Lily Gutnik, Department of Surgery, UAB Heersink School of Medicine, 1807 Seventh Ave South, Birmingham, AL 35233, USA. Email: lgutnik@uabmc.edu Funding information UAB Sparkman Center for Global Health 2022 Pilot Award Abstract Introduction: Cancer‐related stigma is a key driver of advanced breast cancer stage in Sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA). We developed and tested the impact of a breast cancer survivor‐led Stigma reduction intervention (SRI) on stigma and treatment adherence of newly diagnosed patients with breast cancer in Tanzania. Methods: Breast cancer survivors were trained on breast cancer knowl- edge and motivational interviewing. A total of 4 trained survivors delivered a SRI (standardized flipchart breast education talk, personal testimony, and motivational interviewing) to 30 newly diagnosed patients with breast cancer before treatment. Pre‐ and post‐intervention knowledge surveys and stigma scale surveys were analyzed via Fisher's exact test and Wilcoxon rank‐sum tests. A discussion was held with a group of survivors after the intervention period to elicit feedback on their intervention experience. Results: Among the 30 patients, breast cancer knowledge (median overall percent correct) increased from 28% (IQR: 18%–45%) to 85% (IQR: 79%– 88%) (p < 0.001) and stigma (median score) decreased from 75 (IQR: 57–81) to 53 (IQR: 44–66) (p < 0.01) following the intervention. All participants were willing to pursue hospital‐based treatment after undergoing the intervention. Eighty‐seven percent (n = 26) initiated treatment at 8‐week follow‐up after the intervention. All survivors endorsed feeling empowered and valued in their role in this intervention. Conclusions: Breast cancer survivors are a powerful group to combat the lack of knowledge and stigma in community and healthcare settings. Expanding the scope and scale of this intervention holds promise for improving treatment‐seeking behavior and ultimately breast cancer out- comes in SSA. KEYWORDS breast cancer, intervention study, stigma reduction, survivor engagement, Tanzania © 2024 International Society of Surgery/Société Internationale de Chirurgie (ISS/SIC). World J Surg. 2024;1–8. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/wjs - 1