- ALLERGY, RESPIRATORY
- Air Quality Better in Northeast, Midwest
- Traffic, Dust Linked to Asthma in Kids
- Know Your Asthma Triggers
- ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE
- Pharoah's Wine Jar Yields Medicinal Secrets
- Acupuncture May Ease Depression During Pregnancy
- Maggots as Good as Gel in Leg Ulcer Treatments
- ANIMAL CARE
- 'Comfort Dogs' Come to Emotional Rescue
- Animals Respond to Acupuncture's Healing Touch
- Beware of Dog Bites
- BONES & JOINTS
- Studies Struggle to Gauge Glucosamine's Worth
- Rheumatoid Arthritis Rising Among U.S. Women
- Vitamin K Doesn't Slow Bone Loss
- CANCER
- Herb May Counter Liver Damage From Chemo
- Smoking Exposure Now Linked to Colon, Breast Cancers
- Papaya Could Be a Cancer Fighter
- CAREGIVING
- Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome as Deadly as Ever
- Coordination Has Led to Quicker Heart Treatment
- With Alzheimer's, Health-Care Costs Could Triple
- CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
- Laughter Can Boost Heart Health
- High Blood Fat Levels Common in Americans
- Drink a Little Wine, Live a Little Longer
- COSMETIC
- Get Sugared!.... Its a sweet choice for hair removal
- The Acne Drug Accutane More Than Doubles Depression Risk
- Science May Banish Bad Hair Days
- DENTAL, ORAL
- Rheumatoid Arthritis May Harm Gums
- Most Insured Adults Worry About Health Care Costs: Poll
- Scientists Find Gene for Tooth Enamel
- DIABETES
- 'Standard' Glucose Test May Be Wrong One for Obese Children
- Diabetes Linked to Cognitive Problems
- Arthritis Hits More Than Half of Diabetics
- DIET, NUTRITION
- Antioxidant-Rich Foods Lose Nutritional Luster Over Time
- Just Say No to Nuts During Pregnancy
- The Food Irradiation Story
- DISABILITIES
- Could Your Cell Phone Help Shield You From Alzheimer's?
- Review Finds Marijuana May Help MS Patients
- ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
- Skin Woes Take Toll on U.S. Combat Troops
- Stomach Germ May Protect Against Asthma
- Seasons Arriving 2 Days Earlier, Study Says
- EYE CARE, VISION
- Autistic Children Make Limited Eye Contact
- It's a Whole New Outlook for Cataract Patients
- Antioxidant-Rich Diet May Protect Against Eye Disease
- FITNESS
- Walking Golf Course Affects Swing, Performance
- Daily Exercise at School Yields Rewards
- Maximize Your Run
- GASTROINTESTINAL PROBLEMS
- Peppermint Oil, Fiber Can Fight Irritable Bowel
- Intestinal Bacteria Trigger Immune Response
- HRT Use Raises Risk of Stomach Trouble
- GENERAL HEALTH
- Swine Flu May Have Infected More Than 100,000 Americans
- Can You Talk Your Way to Happy?
- Hand Washing 10 Times a Day May Help Keep Flu Away
- HEAD & NECK
- Zen May Thicken Brain, Thwart Pain
- Many Children Will Outgrow Headaches
- Ski Helmets Encouraged for All
- HEALTH & TECHNOLOGY
- Subway Defibrillators Save Lives
- Imaging Sheds Light on How Acupuncture Works
- 'Cell Phone Elbow' -- A New Ill for the Wired Age
- HEART & CARDIOVASCULAR
- Fewer Heart Attacks After England Goes Smoke-Free
- Toothbrushing May Stave Off Heart Woes
- Risk Factor for Stroke More Common Among Whites
- INFECTIOUS DISEASE
- Chinese 'Devil Dung' Plant Could Be a Swine Flu Fighter
- Older Adults May Have Some Immunity to Swine Flu
- Swine Flu Is Now a Pandemic Says W.H.O.
- KID'S HEALTH
- Pool Chemicals Raise Kids Allergy, Asthma Risk
- Health Tip: Back Pain in Children
- Mom's Extra Pregnancy Pounds May Raise Child's Heart Risks
- MEN'S HEALTH
- Low Vitamin D Levels May Boost Men's Heart Attack Risk
- Lots of Sex May Prevent Erectile Dysfunction
- Countdown to Hair Loss
- MENTAL HEALTH
- Chocolate a Sweet Pick-Me-Up for the Depressed
- Most Depressed Teens Don't Get Treatment
- Green Spaces Boost the Body and the Mind
- PREGNANCY
- Woman in America Are Delaying Motherhood, Study Says
- Breast-Feeding Benefits Moms and Babies
- Expectant Mom's Exercise Keeps Newborn's Birth Weight Down
- SENIORS
- Save Your Aging Brain, Try Surfing The Web
- Life Expectancy in U.S. Hits New High
- Living Alone Increases Odds of Developing Dementia
Minorities Distrust Medical System More
By eHolistic.com Published: 02/06/2009
FRIDAY, Feb. 6 (HealthDay News) -- Minority women, especially black women, have more distrust of the medical system, which leads to delays in screening for breast cancer, new research shows.
Almost half of all women agreed that they had "sometimes been deceived or misled by health-care organizations." Eighteen percent strongly agreed with the statement.
On another gauge of mistrust, 39 percent of black women agreed that "health-care organizations don't always keep your information totally private," versus 15 percent of Latinas and 9 percent of Arab-American women.
More mistrust corresponded with lower screening rates.
"While insurance obviously plays a large role in screening [94 percent of blacks had insurance, 45 percent of Latinas and 43 percent of Arab-American women], we can't ignore that medical mistrust plays a large role. We need to think about tailoring our interventions," said study author Karen Patricia Williams, an assistant professor at Michigan State University's College of Human Medicine in Lansing.
The study was presented Thursday at the American Association for Cancer Research's Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities, in Carefree, Ariz.
It was one of four studies that were highlighted in a Thursday news conference, at which Williams and others spoke.
A second study found troubling misunderstandings among Hispanics about the human papillomavirus (HPV), which is sexually transmitted and can cause cervical cancer.
In general, many of the men and women interviewed (who were HPV-negative), did not know much about HPV; many confused this virus with HIV.
"There was a lot of fatalism among women when told about the relationship between HPV and cervical cancer," added study author Maria E. Fernandez, an assistant professor of health promotion and behavioral sciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, School of Public Health. "They thought of it as a death sentence."
Men were more concerned about diagnosis and treatment but also felt that a woman disclosing her HPV status was an admission of infidelity. But, as the interviews continued, they realized the travels of the virus could be ambiguous and that the man, in fact, could have infected the woman.
A third study, from the Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois-Chicago, found that reasons for screening or not screening varied, depending on the specific cancer involved. Forty percent of participants did not have health insurance, though almost two-thirds had a regular doctor.
A fourth and final study delved into why progress in recruiting minorities and women into clinical trials has been slow from the clinicians' perspective.
Lack of institutional support and lack of incentives in individual oncology clinics (both public and private) emerged as key obstacles to effective recruitment.
"None of the places we studied had very effective recruitment programs," said study author Daniel Dohan, an associate professor of health policy and social medicine at the University of California San Francisco. Doctors also tended to put a premium on immediate care, rather than matching someone with the appropriate trial.
-Amanda Gardner
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on cancer disparities among minorities.
SOURCES: Feb. 5, 2009, teleconference with Karen Patricia Williams, Ph.D., assistant professor, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Lansing; Maria E. Fernandez, Ph.D., assistant professor, health promotion and behavioral sciences, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, School of Public Health; and Daniel Dohan, Ph.D., associate professor, health policy and social medicine, University of California, San Francisco
Last Updated: Feb. 06, 2009
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