Cancer screening in Queensland men

To describe the self-reported use of prostate specific antigen (PSA) tests, faecal occult blood tests (FOBTs), and whole-body skin examinations among Queensland men, reasons for use, and the personal characteristics of men undergoing the tests for cancer screening.

Data were obtained from the Queensland Cancer Risk Study (QCRS), a population-based telephone survey conducted in 2004, which used random sampling stratified by age, sex, and geographic location.

All men aged 50-75 years who participated in the QCRS (n = 2336).

Use of PSA test, FOBT, or whole-body skin examination, specifically as a screening procedure; the probability of being screened; and associations with sociodemographic factors, risk behaviour, and cancer experience.

More than a third of men reported never having been screened for prostate, colorectal, or skin cancer. Of those who had been screened, the odds of PSA testing being reported were more than two times greater than the odds of whole-body skin examination (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 2.54; 95% CI, 1.49-4.32), and the odds of reporting an FOBT were less (adjusted OR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.22-1.04). Men who participated in cancer screening tended to be older, white, living with a partner, and to have private health insurance. Smokers were less likely to be screened with any of the three screening tests.

Of these three cancer screening tests, the FOBT has the best evidence for reducing mortality and yet is the least frequently used by Queensland men. There are disparities in reported screening prevalence between the specific tests and across certain population subgroups.