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Demographic, psychosocial, and behavioral associations with cancer screening among a homeless population
Author(s) -
Williams Lovoria B.,
McCall Amber,
Looney Stephen W.,
Joshua Thomas,
Tingen Martha S.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
public health nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.471
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1525-1446
pISSN - 0737-1209
DOI - 10.1111/phn.12391
Subject(s) - psychosocial , medicine , cancer , cancer screening , population , gerontology , lung cancer , health information national trends survey , outreach , demography , cervical cancer , mortality rate , environmental health , health care , oncology , psychiatry , political science , law , sociology , economics , health information , economic growth
Background Although cancer incidence and mortality is declining, cancer remains among the leading causes of death in the United States. Research shows that cancer morbidity and mortality can be reduced by early detection. Yet, both cancer risks and screening behavior remain understudied in the homeless population. Methods Researchers conducted a cross‐sectional survey of homeless individuals ( n = 201). The analysis describes the demographic, psychosocial, and behavioral associations with cancer screenings and knowledge of the lung cancer screening recommendation. Results Participants’ mean age was 51.7 years ( SD 13.6); the group was largely African American (77.3%) and male (67.9%). Among women, the breast and cervical cancer screening rates were 46.5% and 85.1%. Among men the prostate cancer screening rate was 34.2%. Among all participants, the colon cancer screening rate was 44%. Cancer risk behaviors were high. Lung cancer screening knowledge was low (23.0%). Some cancer screening behaviors were associated with age, income, health status, obesity, tobacco use, and physical activity. Discussion Despite higher cancer risk behaviors, knowledge and general participation rates for cancer screenings were below national benchmarks. Conclusion To improve cancer survival among disparate populations, sustained community outreach is necessary to increase awareness of screening recommendations, identify high‐risk individuals, and navigate them to resources.