title: Obstacles to the uptake of breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screenings: what remains to be achieved by French national programmes?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In France, equality in access to screening has been one of the main thrusts of public policies implemented between 2009 and 2013 (the national cancer plan). Our aim in this study was to analyse the obstacles to and levers for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening uptake and their trends over time.
  
  
  METHODS
  Based on representative data from the French Health Care and Health Insurance Survey (three independent, cross-sectional surveys: 2006, 2008, and 2010), multivariate logistic regressions were used to model the association between the nonuse of screening for the three cancers and various independent variables. Then, interactions with survey year dummies allowed the changes in the determinants of these cancer screenings over time to be estimated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Whereas the incentives for screening were strengthened during the period considered, cervical and breast cancer screenings decreased, and colorectal cancer screenings increased sharply (from 18.2% (95% CI = [17.0-19.4]) in 2006 to 38.9% (95% CI = [37.4-40.5] in 2010. Under-users of the three cancer screenings were primarily unskilled workers (ORcervix = 1.64 [1.38-1.95]), individuals without complementary health insurance (ORbreast = 2.05 [1.68-2.51]), or individuals with free complementary health insurance who more rarely use outpatient care. Moreover, individuals reporting either risky behaviours, namely heavy smokers (ORcolorectal = 1.70) and high-risk drinkers (ORcervix = 1.42) or very safe behaviours, namely neither smoking nor drinking, underused screenings. Despite the implementation of national programmes for breast and colorectal cancer screenings, the disparities and inequalities in screening uptake did not decrease over the study period.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results demonstrate the need for additional primary prevention efforts targeting the identified under-users by focusing on, for instance, individuals with a very healthy lifestyle. Health authorities could also intensify their efforts to promote increased access to screening for the most disadvantaged individuals.
authors.affiliation: Cermes3, UMR8211, Inserm U988, Site CNRS, 7, rue Guy Moquet, 94801 Villejuif Cedex, France. jonathan.sicsic@inserm.fr.
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sicsic
authors.forename: Carine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Franc
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D005602:France; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D054625:Healthcare Disparities; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D009313:National Health Programs; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011322:Primary Prevention