Mammographic screening practices among Chinese-Australian women

To report mammographic screening practice among Chinese-Australian women, and to examine the relationship between demographic characteristics, acculturation factors (English proficiency and length of stay in Australia), cultural beliefs, and having a mammogram as recommended.

Cross-sectional and descriptive. The study was conducted in 2009 in Sydney, Australia. Of 988 Chinese-Australian women over 18 years of age invited to participate in the study, 785 (79%) completed and returned the questionnaire. Of these women, 320 (40.8%) were in the target age range of 50 to 69 years.

The Chinese Breast Cancer Screening Beliefs Questionnaire (CBCSB) was used as a data collection instrument. Analysis included descriptive statistics, bivariate analysis using chi-square and t tests, and logistic regression.

Of the 320 women in the targeted age range of 50 to 69 years, 238 (74.4%) had a mammogram as recommended biannually. Being married-de facto, in the 60 to 69 age group, and speaking Cantonese at home were positively associated with women's mammographic screening practice. However, no statistically significant differences in acculturation factors and having a mammogram as recommended were found. In terms of CBCSB score, women who had mammograms as recommended had more positive attitudes toward health checkups and perceived fewer barriers to mammographic screening.

Effort should be focused on specific subgroups of Chinese-Australian women in order to fully understand the barriers involved in participating in mammographic screening.

Nurses can use the findings from the present study to design culturally sensitive breast cancer screening programs to encourage women's participation in mammography.