Instruments that measure beliefs about cancer from a cultural perspective.

Understanding beliefs about cancer from a cultural perspective is of great importance as the population mix of this country continues to shift and change. In order to assess the cancer beliefs held by diverse populations, culturally specific tools are needed. The purpose of this article is to identify and describe instruments that have been used to assess beliefs about cancer. Eight published and unpublished instruments were identified from a review of the literature. These tools address attitudes and beliefs toward cancer, cancer prevention, and cancer treatment within a variety of age groups and ethnic populations. One tool was related to adolescents, whereas the remainder focused on adults; three were translated into other languages; four tools involved questionnaire format and four interview format. Although it is encouraging to report that culturally specific tools are being developed, there is a demonstrated need to increase the expertise in developing such instruments.