Abstract A42: Adherence to cancer screening tests among Appalachian women

Abstract

Abstract Purpose. Appalachian populations suffer from higher rates of cancer incidence and mortality than non-Appalachian populations. Research has documented disparities in the receipt of recent cancer screening tests for each test individually (ie, mammography (MA), Pap Test (PT) and colonoscopy, flexible sigmoidoscopy or FOBT (CRC)), however, no study has documented disparities in the receipt of multiple screening tests in this population. Methods. As part of a larger study on community-based participatory research strategies to reach Appalachian community members about the need for CRC screening, we surveyed 644 women aged 51-75 who completed a phone survey after being randomly selected from commercially available lists for 12 Appalachian Ohio counties. The survey included questions about the receipt of PT (within last year), MA (within the last year), and CRC (last year for FOBT, last 5 years for FS and last 10 years for colonoscopy). The frequencies of each test, as well as the total number of tests reported (0,1,2,3), were calculated. Analysis of factors associated with being in guidelines by test and by number of tests was also conducted. Results. About 2/3 of the women (67%) had not had a recent PT, 46% had not had a recent MA, and 46% were not within guidelines for CRC. Only 19% of the women were within guidelines for all 3 tests, with 27% reporting not being within guidelines for any of the 3 tests. Predictors of adherence to the screening tests will be presented. Conclusions. Many women in Appalachia Ohio have not received recent cancer screening tests. The PT appears to be the most underused, which may explain the higher cervical cancer mortality rates in this region of the country. A quarter of the women were not adherent to any of the 3 tests, which suggests that interventions should focus on improving multiple screening behaviors to reduce high cancer rates in this underserved population. Citation Format: Electra D. Paskett, Gregory Young, Michael Pennell, Mira L. Katz, Paul L. Reiter. Adherence to cancer screening tests among Appalachian women. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Sixth AACR Conference: The Science of Cancer Health Disparities; Dec 6–9, 2013; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2014;23(11 Suppl):Abstract nr A42. doi:10.1158/1538-7755.DISP13-A42