title: Health literacy and cancer prevention: two new instruments to assess comprehension.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Ability to understand spoken health information is an important facet of health literacy, but to date, no instrument has been available to quantify patients' ability in this area. We sought to develop a test to assess comprehension of spoken health messages related to cancer prevention and screening to fill this gap, and a complementary test of comprehension of written health messages.
  
  
  METHODS
  We used the Sentence Verification Technique to write items based on realistic health messages about cancer prevention and screening, including media messages, clinical encounters and clinical print materials. Items were reviewed, revised, and pre-tested. Adults aged 40-70 participated in a pilot administration in Georgia, Hawaii, and Massachusetts.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The Cancer Message Literacy Test-Listening is self-administered via touchscreen laptop computer. No reading is required. It takes approximately 1 hour. The Cancer Message Literacy Test-Reading is self-administered on paper. It takes approximately 10min.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These two new tests will allow researchers to assess comprehension of spoken health messages, to examine the relationship between listening and reading literacy, and to explore the impact of each form of literacy on health-related outcomes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Researchers and clinicians now have a means of measuring comprehension of spoken health information.
authors.affiliation: Meyers Primary Care Institute, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Reliant Medical Group, Fallon Community Health Plan, Worcester, MA 01605, USA. Kathy.Mazor@meyersprimary.org
authors.forename: Kathleen M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Mazor
authors.forename: Douglas W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Roblin
authors.forename: Andrew E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Sarah M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Greene
authors.forename: Bridget
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gaglio
authors.forename: Terry S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Field
authors.forename: Mary E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Costanza
authors.forename: Paul K J
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Saccoccio
authors.forename: Josephine
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Calvi
authors.forename: Erica
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cove
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cowan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D032882:Comprehension; D004521:Educational Measurement / Q000379:methods*; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D005845:Georgia; D006254:Hawaii; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D057220:Health Literacy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008404:Massachusetts; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011932:Reading; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards