Perceived risk for breast cancer and its relationship to mammography in Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites.

A challenge for health behavior science is to develop theory and best practices that take cultural diversity into account. Using data from Black, Hispanic, and White respondents to the 2003 Health Information National Trends Survey, we examined racial/ethnic differences in: (1) breast cancer risk perceptions/worry; (2) the associations between perceived risk/worry and ever having received a mammogram; and (3) perceived risk/worry and having had at least 2 mammograms over a 4-year period (consecutive mammography). Compared to White race/ethnicity, Black race/ethnicity was associated with lower perceived absolute risk and comparative risk for developing cancer.

The state of research on racial/ethnic discrimination in the receipt of health care.

Objectives: We conducted a review to examine current literature on the effects of interpersonal and institutional racism and discrimination occurring within health care settings on the health care received by racial/ethnic minority patients.

Methods: We searched the PsychNet, PubMed, and Scopus databases for articles on US populations published between January 1, 2008 and November 1, 2011. We used various combinations of the following search terms: discrimination, perceived discrimination, race, ethnicity, racism, institutional racism, stereotype, prejudice or bias, and health or health care.

A population-based study of therapy and survival for patients with head and neck cancer treated in the community.

Background: The objective of this study was to examine patterns of care and survival in a population-based sample of patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) who were treated in the community or in hospitals that had residency training programs.

Methods: Data from the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program were used to sample 1317 patients aged ≥20 years with invasive squamous HNC who were diagnosed during 2004 and who had vital status available through 2008.

Results: Treatment and survival were influenced by tumor site and disease stage.

The role of worksite and home smoking bans in smoking cessation among U.S. employed adult female smokers.

Purpose: Examine the association of work and home smoking bans with quitting behaviors among employed female smokers in the United States.

Design: Secondary analyses using cross-sectional data from the 2006/2007 Tobacco Use Supplement to the Current Population Survey.

Subjects: Nationally representative sample of 7610 U.

Racial/ethnic differences in receipt of pelvic lymph node dissection among men with localized/regional prostate cancer.

Background: Black and Hispanic men have a lower prostate cancer (PCa) survival rate than white men. This racial/ethnic survival gap has been explained in part by differences in tumor characteristics, stage at diagnosis, and disparities in receipt of definitive treatment. Another potential contributing factor is racial/ethnic differences in the timely and accurate detection of lymph node metastases.

Nicotine dependence and quitting behaviors among menthol and non-menthol smokers with similar consumptive patterns.

Aims: This study examines the associations between usual cigarette brand (i.e. menthol, non-menthol) and markers for nicotine dependence and quitting behaviors.

Racial/ethnic patterns of uptake of colorectal screening, National Health Interview Survey 2000-2008.

Background: Lower access and/or utilization of colorectal screening are thought to be major contributors to the higher proportion of cancers among African Americans and Hispanics that are diagnosed at advanced stages of disease and the poorer outcomes observed among Hispanics and African Americans compared with non-Hispanic whites. We examine rates of initiation, utilization of specific screening modalities, adherence tocolorectal screening guidelines, and rate of uptake of colonoscopy among age-eligible African Americans, Hispanics and non-Hispanic whites.

Methods: Data on 46145 African American, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic white survey respondents to the 2000 and 2005 Cancer Control Modules and the 2003 and 2008 Sample Adult Cores of the National Health Interview Surveys are examined in these analyses.

Race, ethnicity, and pain among the U.S. adult population.

Introduction: There is reliable evidence that racial/ethnic minorities suffer disproportionately from unrelieved pain compared with Whites. Several factors may contribute to disparities in pain management. Understanding how these factors influence effective pain management among racial/ethnic minority populations would be helpful for developing tailored interventions designed to eliminate racial/ethnic disparities in pain management.

Perceived cancer risk: why is it lower among nonwhites than whites?

Background: We explored racial/ethnic differences in perceived cancer risk and determinants of these differences in a nationally representative sample of whites, blacks, Hispanics, and Asians.

Methods: Multiple regression techniques, including mediational analyses, were used to identify determinants and quantify racial/ethnic differences in the perception of the risk of developing cancer among 5,581 adult respondents to the 2007 Health Information Trends Survey (HINTS).

Results: Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians reported lower perceived cancer risk than whites [Bs = -0.

Race/ethnicity, risk perception, and receipt of prostate-specific antigen testing.

Background: Men who do not perceive themselves to be at risk of developing and dying from prostate cancer may be less likely to utilize prostate cancer screening. This, coupled with variation among organizations in recommendations about screening with prostate-specific antigen (PSA), may contribute to confusion for providers and/or patients making prostate cancer screening decisions.

Methods: Data on 1075 African American, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic white male respondents to the 2003 Health Information National Trends Study (HINTS) were analyzed to examine the association among demographic characteristics, perception of the risk of developing prostate cancer, and PSA test utilization among men aged 45 or older.

Racial/ethnic patterns of care for pancreatic cancer.

Introduction: The small proportion of cancers diagnosed at the local disease stage, resectable at the time diagnosis, and responsive to chemotherapy contribute to poor survival making pancreatic cancer the fourth leading cause of cancer death among Americans. This emphasizes the importance of receiving appropriate palliative care. Racial/ethnic cancer treatment disparities have been observed for many cancer sites.

Race/ethnicity and the perception of the risk of developing prostate cancer.

Background: Although the higher risk of prostate cancer for African-American men is well known in the medical community, it is not clear how prevalent this knowledge is among African-American men themselves. Both the side effects of treatment and the lack of a demonstrated mortality benefit of routine screening with the prostate-specific antigen test among men in the general population have increased the focus on patient participation in decision making about prostate cancer screening.

Methods: Data on 1075 male respondents to the 2003 Health Information National Trends Study were collected from October 2002 to April 2003 and analyzed in 2008 to examine the associations among race/ethnicity, demographic characteristics, and the perception of the risk of developing prostate cancer for African-American, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic white men aged >or=45 years without a history of prostate cancer.

Employment characteristics and socioeconomic factors associated with disparities in smoking abstinence and former smoking among U.S. workers.

Purpose: This study examines the associations among employment and socioeconomic factors and the outcomes, current smoking, cigarette abstinence and former smoking among adult U.S. workers ages 18-64 (n=288,813).

A biopsychosocial approach to examining tobacco-related health disparities among racially classified social groups.

Aims: To articulate a broader, multi-causal model that incorporates psychosocial and environmental factors that can differ systematically across racially classified social groups (RCSGs) and impact biological pathways related to the development of tobacco-related diseases.

Methods: This paper is built upon a review of the existing scientific literature on selected biopsychosocial factors (diet/nutrition, obesity, alcoholic intake, psychosocial stress, occupational/environmental exposures and exposure to other diseases and illnesses) and tobacco use in examining the biological contributions to differences in tobacco-related health outcomes among RCSGs.

Findings: Recent work has focused on RCSG genetic variations as a possible explanation for differences in tobacco-related health disparities.

Measurement of socioeconomic status in health disparities research.

Socioeconomic status (SES) is frequently implicated as a contributor to the disparate health observed among racial/ ethnic minorities, women and elderly populations. Findings from studies that examine the role of SES and health disparities, however, have provided inconsistent results. This is due in part to the: 1) lack of precision and reliability of measures; 2) difficulty with the collection of individual SES data; 3) the dynamic nature of SES over a lifetime; 4) the classification of women, children, retired and unemployed persons; 5) lack of or poor correlation between individual SES measures; and 6) and inaccurate or misleading interpretation of study results.

Workplace and home smoking restrictions and racial/ethnic variation in the prevalence and intensity of current cigarette smoking among women by poverty status, TUS-CPS 1998-1999 and 2001-2002.

Study Objective: Recognition of the health consequences of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke has led government agencies and many employers to establish policies that restrict cigarette smoking in public and workplaces. This cross sectional study examines the association of workplace smoking policies and home smoking restrictions with current smoking among women.

Design: Participants were employed US women ages 18-64 who were self respondents to the 1998-1999 or 2000-2001 tobacco use supplement to the current population survey supplements.

Racial/ethnic variation in the anatomic subsite location of in situ and invasive cancers of the colon.

Introduction: Approximately 145,000 Americans were diagnosed with colorectal cancer and 56,000 died from colorectal cancer in 2006. Although colorectal screening can reduce mortality and incidence, U.S.

Racism and health inequity among Americans.

Unlabelled: Research reports often cite socioeconomic status as an underlying factor in the pervasive disparities in health observed for racial/ethnic minority populations. However, often little information or consideration is given to the social history and prevailing social climate that is responsible for racial/ethnic socioeconomic disparities, namely, the role of racism/racial discrimination. Much of the epidemiologic research on health disparities has focused on the relationship between demographic/clinical characteristics and health outcomes in main-effects multivariate models.

Barriers to racial/ethnic minority application and competition for NIH research funding.

Background: Despite recognition of the need to increase the pool of racial/ethnic minority investigators, racial/ethnic minority representation among National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded investigators remains low. Racial/ethnic minority investigators bring unique perspectives and experiences that enhance the potential for understanding factors that underlie racial/ethnic variation in health and health status. Identification of barriers to successful minority competition for NIH funding and suggestions for strategies to overcome them were obtained from a concept mapping project and a meeting of minority investigators and investigators at minority-serving institutions.

Racial/ethnic variation in cigarette smoking among the civilian US population by occupation and industry, TUS-CPS 1998-1999.

Background: Although observational research studies have shown variance in the prevalence of smoking among occupations and industries, few have examined the role of race/ethnicity. This study examined racial/ethnic variation in the prevalence of current smoking and cigarette consumption patterns by occupation, industry and workplace smoking policy.

Methods: Data were examined for 9095 African American (AA), 1025 American Indian/Alaska Native, 3463 Asian/Pacific Islander (AAPI), 8428 Hispanic, and 86,676 white participants in the 1998-1999 Tobacco Use Supplement to the Current Population Survey.

Race/ethnicity and the intensity of medical monitoring under 'watchful waiting' for prostate cancer.

Background: Previous studies have found that racial/ethnic minority patients with prostate cancer are more frequently managed with "watchful waiting." Little, however, is known about the medical care received among men managed with watchful waiting. We examine the type and intensity of medical monitoring received by African American, Hispanic, and white patients with prostate cancer managed with "watchful waiting" in fee-for-service systems.