title: A Promotora-administered group education intervention to promote breast and cervical cancer screening in a rural community along the U.S.-Mexico border: a randomized controlled trial.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Breast cancer is the most common neoplasm among Hispanic women. Cervical cancer has a higher incidence and mortality among Hispanic women compared with non-Hispanic White women.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the effectiveness of a promotora-administered educational intervention to promote breast and cervical cancer screening among post-reproductive age, medically underserved Hispanic women residing along the U.S.-Mexico border.
  
  
  METHODS
  Women age 50 or older were eligible to participate in this intervention study. A total of 381 subjects agreed to participate. Women were randomly assigned into one of two groups, educational intervention or usual care. The primary outcomes were self-reported mammogram and Pap smear screening. Logistic regression analysis was used to compute odds ratios for comparisons between intervention and control groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Women in the intervention group were 2.0 times more likely to report having had a mammogram within the last year when compared with the usual care group (95% CI = 1.3-3.1). Likewise, women in the intervention group were 1.5 times more likely to report having a Pap smear within the last year when compared with the usual care group, although this was not statistically significant (95% CI = 0.9-2.6). In a secondary analysis, the intervention suggests a stronger effect on those that had not had a mammogram or Pap smear within the past year at baseline.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A promotora-based educational intervention can be used to increase breast and cervical cancer screening utilization among Hispanic women.
authors.affiliation: The Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, Division of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, University of Arizona, 1295 N. Martin A250, PO Box 245209, Tucson, AZ 85724-5209, USA.
authors.forename: Tomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nuño
authors.forename: Maria Elena
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Martinez
authors.forename: Robin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: García
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000517:prevention & control; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008327:Mammography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017058:Mexican Americans / Q000193:education*; D008800:Mexico / Q000208:ethnology; D008875:Middle Aged; D065006:Papanicolaou Test; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012424:Rural Population; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D014626:Vaginal Smears / Q000706:statistics & numerical data