Volume 26, Issue 5: October, 1999

Abstract

PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH THE USE OF BREAST CANCER SCREENING BY WOMEN AGE 60 YEARS OR OVER

Robert Michielutte, PhD, Mark B. Dignan, PhD, MPH, Bonnie Lanier Smith, BA, ACBSW, CSW

Address reprint requests to: Robert Michielutte, Department of Family and Community Medicine, Bowman Gray School of Medicine of Wake Forest University, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157; phone: (336) 716-2241; fax: (336) 716-3206; e-mail: bmichiel@bgsm.edu

This study examined psychosocial factors related to breast cancer screening among older women. Data for the study were obtained from interviews with 719 women age 60 years or over attending rural and urban primary care clinics in North Carolina. The results indicated that 50% of the women had mammograms in the past year, 65% reported clinical breast examinations in the past year, and 31% said they practiced breast self-examinations once a month. Several psychosocial factors were significant predictors of a lower likelihood of being screened. Multivariate analysis confirmed the importance of psychosocial factors as predictors of breast cancer screening. Educational intervention to increase screening for breast cancer in this population is needed, and the results provide specific suggestions regarding the content of effective educational materials and approaches for older women.