Decisions and prompts to screen for cervical, bowel, and breast cancer

To investigate what makes Australians decide to screen and follow through for breast, cervical, and bowel cancer population screening programs.

A convenience sample (N = 962) answered open-text questions about their decision to screen and what prompted them to act in an online survey. Open text responses were coded based on shared meaning using content analysis. Frequencies of each code were calculated.

For breast and cervical screening, decisions were commonly based on screening being routine (32.58%_breast and 35.19%_cervical) or receiving a reminder (20.53% _breast 13.07% _cervical), and similarly, common prompts were receiving a reminder (40.68% _breast and 29.13% _cervical), screening being routine (22.05% _breast and 18.65% _cervical). Participants reported deciding to screen for bowel cancer due to arrival of home screening test kit (40.50%) or the experience of loved one's cancer (13.57%) and were prompted by arrival of home test kit (23.58%), and convenience (15.72%).

Findings can inform the development of interventions targeting non-participants of cancer screening programs.

Messages to encourage breast and cervical cancer screening should frame screening as part of regular healthcare routine. Messages to encourage bowel cancer screening should encourage immediate use of the screening kit upon arrival.