Cancer screening behaviors and barriers in Asian Americans

Objectives: To determine differences in screening for routine physical exam and cancers among Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Cambodian Americans. Methods: The sample consisted of 2011 participants. Chi square was used to identify relationships between demographic/ acculturation factors and screenings. Results: Neverscreened rates were high for all Asian subgroups. Never-screened rates for mammography ranged from 20.1% to 78.5%; for Pap test, 28% to 75.6%; for prostate cancer, 56.7% to 97%; for colorectal cancer, 65.3% to 94.9%. Koreans had the highest never screened for health checkups (34.7%). Conclusions: Efforts should be made to comply with screening guidelines among Asian Americans.