Family and cultural influences on cervical cancer screening among immigrant Latinas in Miami-Dade County, USA

Abstract

Cervical cancer disproportionately affects minorities, immigrants and low-income women in the USA, with disparities greatest among Latino immigrants. We examined barriers and facilitators to cervical cancer screening practices among a group of immigrant Latino women in Florida, USA. Between January and May 2013, six focus group discussions, involving 35 participants, were conducted among Hispanic women in Miami to explore their knowledge, beliefs about cervical cancer and facilitators and barriers to cervical cancer screening using a theoretical framework. The data showed that family support, especially from female relatives, was an important facilitator of screening and treatment. Women, however, reported prioritising family health over their own, and some expressed fatalistic beliefs about cancer. Major obstacles to receiving a Pap smear included fear that it might result in removal of the uterus, discomfort about being seen by a male doctor and concern that testing might stigmatise them as being sexually promiscuous or having a sexually transmitted disease. Targeted education on cancer and prevention is critically needed in this population. Efforts should focus on women of all ages since younger women often turn to older female relatives for advice.

Predicting Behavioral Intentions Related to Cervical Cancer Screening Using a Three-Level Model for the TPB and SCT in Nanjing, China

“…Therefore, it is urgent to solve the problem of low screening rates. Previous studies have found that internal cognitive behavior factors, external social influencing factors, cervical cancer knowledge, and some demographic variables are the important influencing factors related to the behavior intentions for cervical cancer screening [8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24]. This information may provide direction and methods for interventions to investigate how these factors influence the behavior intentions related to cervical cancer screening among Chinese women.…”

“…Kristiansen et al (2012) and Ogunwal et al (2016) revealed that support from surrounding populations, male partners, and family members increased women’s participation in cervical cancer screening [13,14]. Madhivanan et al (2016) demonstrated that family factors and education affected the use of cervical cancer screening services for Latin Miami immigrants [15]. The support of female family members was an important factor in promoting screening.…”

Health Literacy and Cervical Cancer Screening Among Mexican-American Women

“…This is similar to recent research as authors report that the family is both a barrier and a facilitator. Family can have a positive impact on cervical cancer screening, as well as be a barrier when the “family first” way of life takes priority over self-care (Madhivanan, Valderrama, Krupp, & Ibanez, 2016).…”

Correlation of Interpersonal Factors, Situational with Cervical Cancer Prevention in Woman of Childbearing Age

“…Families can contribute to the prevention of cervical cancer by providing support and motivation (Fallahi, Shahrbabaki, Hashemian, & Kahanali, 2016). Family support, especially from female relatives, provides encouragement and motivation for individuals to perform a pap smear test (Madhivanan, Valderrama, Krupp, & Ibanez, 2015). Prevention efforts that are sufficient in the region are supported by the regions' existing additional service for cervical cancer prevention conducted by health workers.…”