A literature review of breast cancer screening barriers among Arab American women

2^nd World Congress on Breast Cancer

September 19-21, 2016 Phoenix, USA

Sarah Alkhaifi

University of California, USA

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Cancer Sci Ther

Abstract :

Background: Immigrants of ethnic minorities are the most likely to be diagnosed with advanced breast cancer (BC), and they subsequently have a higher mortality rate than nonimmigrant women. Despite facing this risk of BC, women from ethnic minority groups, such as Arab American women (AAW), are less likely to participate in breast cancer screening (BCS). Purpose: This integrative literature review is to provide an overview of BCS barriers among AAW. Methods: Online searches conducted on PubMed, CINAH, Google Scholar and PsycINFO, for articles dating from 2005 to 2015. Some of the keywords used: Arab American, mammogram, BCS, knowledge, attitude, and culture. Fifteen studies met the inclusion criteria which are (1) studies that exclusively or partially consisted of AAW participants; (2) research that studied AAW�s attitudes or practices toward BCS; and (3) studies that were written in English. Findings & Conclusion: BCS barriers among AAW are divided into four main categories that are further subdivided into subcategories, including socio-cultural barriers (family, stigma, and modesty); psychological (fatalism, perceived susceptibility, and fear); organizational barriers (language issues, health care system navigation difficulties, health care provider (HCP) preferences, and physicians� recommendations); and structural barriers (lack of health insurance, transportation issues, and distance of the facilities). Some BCS barriers, including fatalism and family relationships, were also found to be facilitators for some AAW to obtain BCS. The studies contradicted one another as to whether modesty was a BCS barrier. Acculturation and religiosity are one of possible explanations for results contradiction which need consideration in future research.