Cervical cancer screening among Chinese Americans.
OBJECTIVE
Chinese women in North America have high rates of invasive cervical cancer and low levels of Papanicolaou (Pap) testing use. This study examined Pap testing barriers and facilitators among Chinese American women.


METHODS
A community-based, in-person survey of Chinese women was conducted in Seattle, Washington during 1999. Four hundred and thirty-two women in the 20-79 years age-group were included in this analysis. The main outcome measures were a history of at least one previous Pap smear and Pap testing within the last 2 years.


RESULTS
Nineteen percent of the respondents had never received cervical cancer screening and 36% had not been screened in the previous 2 years. Eight characteristics were independently associated with a history of at least one Pap smear: being married, thinking Pap testing is necessary for sexually inactive women, lack of concerns about embarrassment or cancer being discovered, having received a physician or family recommendation, having obtained family planning services in North America, and having a regular provider. The following characteristics were independently associated with recent screening: thinking Pap testing is necessary for sexually inactive women, lack of concern about embarrassment, having received a physician recommendation, having obtained obstetric services in North America, and having a regular provider.


CONCLUSIONS
Pap testing levels among the study respondents were well below the National Cancer Institute's Year 2000 goals. The findings suggest that cervical cancer control interventions for Chinese are more likely to be effective if they are multifaceted.
Taylor
Victoria M
VM
Division of Public Health Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98105, USA. vtaylor@fhcrc.org
Jackson
J Carey
JC
Tu
Shin-ping
SP
Yasui
Yutaka
Y
Schwartz
Stephen M
SM
Kuniyuki
Alan
A
Acorda
Elizabeth
E
Lin
Kathy
K
Hislop
Gregory
G
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001213:Asian / Q000523:psychology*; D002681:China / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006302:Health Services Research; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D065006:Papanicolaou Test; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014626:Vaginal Smears / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014861:Washington