Sociocultural correlates of breast cancer knowledge and screening in urban African American women.

Abstract

African American women are more likely to die of breast cancer than women of any other racial or ethnic group,1 even though national surveys report that mammography rates are higher for African Americans than for other groups.2 At least part of this discrepancy has been attributed to delayed diagnosis.3,4 Identifying sociocultural factors that influence timely screening and incorporating them into health messages for African American women may help reduce this disparity. This study examined associations between 5 such factors—collectivism, spirituality, racial pride, and present and future time orientation— and breast cancer–related knowledge, barriers to mammography, and mammography use and stage of change among urban African American women.