Abstract
This study explored the association between health literacy, barriers to breast cancer screening, and breast screening participation for women from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. English-, Arabic- and Italian-speaking women (n = 317) between the ages of 50 to 74 in North West Melbourne, Australia were recruited to complete a survey exploring health literacy, barriers to breast cancer screening, and self-reported screening participation. A total of 219 women (69%) reported having a breast screen within the past two years. Results revealed that health literacy was not associated with screening participation. Instead, emotional barriers were a significant factor in the self-reported uptake of screening. Three health literacy domains were related to lower emotional breast screening barriers, feeling understood and supported by healthcare providers, social support for health and understanding health information well enough to know what to do. Compared with English- and Italian-speaking women, Arabic-speaking women reported more emotional barriers to screening and greater challenges in understanding health information well enough to know what to do. Interventions that can improve breast screening participation rates should aim to reduce emotional barriers to breast screening, particularly for Arabic-speaking women.
Highlights
Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer for women globally and the second leading cause of cancer mortality for Australian women [1,2]
The aim of this study was to explore if women from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds with lower health literacy reported greater emotional, knowledge, or structural barriers that may inhibit their participation in breast cancer screening
Emotional screening barriers were negatively associated with up-to-date breast screening participation
Summary
Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer for women globally and the second leading cause of cancer mortality for Australian women [1,2]. Breast screening programs provide an opportunity for early breast cancer detection and contribute to increased survivorship and reduced breast cancer mortality [3,4]. While controversy exists regarding the effectiveness of mammography [5,6], women need to be adequately informed about the benefits of screening alongside the potential harm of false positive results and unnecessary treatment when deciding to participate in breast screening [7,8]. Res. Public Health 2018, 15, 1677; doi:10.3390/ijerph15081677 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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