Abstract

Breast Cancer Screening Access Among Women with Sensory Loss: Insights from 2022 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS)

Amanda Hinson-Enslin, PhD, MPH, CHES¹, Nicole Ducray, MPH² and Heather McClintock, PhD, MSPH, MSW³
(1)Sugarcreek Township, OH, (2)Arcaida University, Glenside, PA, PA, (3)Arcadia University, Glenside, PA

APHA 2025 Annual Meeting and Expo

Background: Persons with sensory loss face significant barriers when accessing quality healthcare services, specifically screening for breast cancer. The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that women who are 40-74 get screened for breast cancer every 2 years. Few studies have analyzed whether sensory loss influences the receipt of mammograms in the U.S. in nationally representative samples.

Purpose: To examine the association between sensory loss (visual, hearing, or dual sensory loss) and access to mammography among females 40-74 years of age.

Methods: This study used data for women ages 40-74 from the 2022 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS) (n=58,239) to analyze the relationship between self-reported sensory loss and receipt of breast cancer screenings. Weighted Logistic regression analyses were conducted using SPSS Version 29.

Results: Females ages 40-74 with dual sensory (both vision and hearing) loss were nearly half as likely to have received a mammogram in the past two years (adjusted odds ratio (AOR)= .569, 95% confidence interval (CI)= (.389-.831)) in comparison to those with neither disability. Females 40-74 years of age with dual sensory (both vision and hearing) loss were twice as likely to have not received a mammogram in the past 5 years or more (AOR= 2.093, 95% CI= (1.127-3.887)) in comparison to those with neither disability.

Conclusion: Females ages 40-74 with dual sensory loss were significantly less likely to receive mammograms. Further research focused on understanding and addressing the factors influencing access to breast cancer screenings is needed.

Advocacy for health and health education Assessment of individual and community needs for health education Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs Provision of health care to the public Public health or related research Social and behavioral sciences