Exploring upstream intergenerational communication to promote cancer prevention and awareness among African-American daughters and mothers

Although many cancer prevention initiatives have been enlisted, racial disparities in breast and cervical cancer continue to persist. One potentially effective approach is to develop innovative ways to build upon the strengths of the mother-daughter relationship in African-American families. Specifically, to encourage African-American daughters to relay important health information to their mothers. We describe how the nominal group technique (NGT) was used to inform the development of a breast and cervical cancer awareness program for African-American adult daughters and mothers.

NGT was used with 30 African-American daughters (ages 18-35) and 19 mothers (mothers of women ages 18-35). Daughter groups and mother groups were conducted separately. Responses were tallied and audio recordings were reviewed to provide context and/or clarity to participant responses.

In many cases, daughters and mothers had similar thoughts about what African-American women should know about breast/cervical cancer, challenges to sharing cancer information between daughter and mother, and thoughts on what would make it easier to share such information. Many responses centered on elements of the communication dynamic between daughters and mothers rather than specific content messaging about cancer.

Findings illustrate the potential of upstream intergenerational communication to effectively relay health information between African-American daughters and mothers. Given that breast and cervical cancers have better survival rates when detected and treated early, and that late detection is associated with higher mortality among African-Americans, conveying health-related information from a trusted source (e.g. an adult daughter) is an important strategy to address the cancer prevention and control needs of African-American women.