Cancer Screening among Hispanic and White Non-Hispanic Women, 2000-2005

Hispanics are the largest and fastest growing ethnic group in the United States. However, compared to White non-Hispanics, Hispanics have significantly lower cancer screening rates. The Screen for Life campaign, which included intervention materials in Spanish, was launched nationally in 1999 to increase public awareness about the importance of having regular colorectal cancer screening tests. Meanwhile, various intervention studies were conducted to increase screening for cancers including colorectal cancer. It was hypothesized that colorectal cancer screening rates would increase more dramatically due to a national campaign, especially among Hispanics. The objective of this study was to compare colorectal, breast and cervical cancer screening rates between 2000 and 2005 among Hispanic and non-Hispanic White women, using data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). The age range of the study subjects and the definitions of cancer screening were site-specific and based on the American Cancer Society recommendations. Although the increase was greater among White non-Hispanics, our results showed that endoscopy screening for colorectal cancer increased at least 1.9-fold from 2000 to 2005 among both ethnic groups (p<0.01). Contrarily, the use of home-based fecal occult blood test (FOBT) for the detection of colorectal cancer, mammogram, and Pap smear test declined during the same time period among both ethnic groups. These results suggested that increased endoscopy screening may reflect a shift from FOBT to endoscopy and a culturally sensitive and linguistically appropriate national intervention may be more effective in promoting cancer screening in both Hispanic and non-Hispanic White women.