Engagement in breast cancer screening behaviors.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To distinguish women who engaged in recommended breast cancer screening from those who did not.

DESIGN

Descriptive design, with quantitative measures.

SETTING

Urban, county hospital serving many low-income clients.

SAMPLE

119 women, age 51 to 80, who had not had mammograms in the last 13 months.

METHOD

Nurse-conducted telephone interviews that incorporated a modified Profile of Mood States, Attitudes Towards Mammography Scale, Barriers Scale, and reports of engagement in mammography and clinical breast exam (CBE) in the last 13 months and breast self-exam (BSE) practice in the last 3 months.

MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES

Affect, beliefs, facilitators, and knowledge regarding screening; engagement in mammography, CBE, and BSE.

FINDINGS

In discriminant analyses of engagement in mammography and CBE, affect, barriers, prior history of breast problems, and race were significant variables. In discriminant analysis of BSE, history of breast biopsy, family history of breast cancer, beliefs about screening and cancer, prior instruction in BSE, and being single were significant variables.

CONCLUSIONS

Variables that discriminated between use and non-use of professional screening were different from those that discriminated between use and non-use of BSE.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE

Nurses can promote professional breast screening by addressing women's negative affect, prior breast concerns, and barriers, especially among Caucasians. Nurses can promote monthly BSE by supporting realistic beliefs about screening and cancer as well as by demonstrating BSE, especially among married women.