Perceived barriers to mammography among underserved women in a Breast Health Center Outreach Program.

Background: To investigate perceived barriers to mammography among underserved women, we asked participants in the Siteman Cancer Center Mammography Outreach Registry-developed in 2006 to evaluate mobile mammography's effectiveness among the underserved-why they believed women did not get mammograms.

Methods: The responses of approximately 9,000 registrants were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression. We report adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) significant at 2-tailed P values less than .05.

Results: Fears of cost (40%), mammogram-related pain (13%), and bad news (13%) were the most commonly reported barriers. Having insurance was associated with not perceiving cost as a barrier (OR .44, 95% CI .40 to .49), but with perceiving fear of both mammogram-related pain (OR 1.39, 95% CI 1.21 to 1.60) and receiving bad news (OR 1.38, 95% CI 1.19 to 1.60) as barriers.

Conclusion: Despite free services, underserved women continue to report experiential and psychological obstacles to mammography, suggesting the need for more targeted education and outreach in this population.