Risk assessment for breast and cervical cancer and the use of screening services

Early diagnosis has a major role in the prognosis of breast and cervical cancer. The aim of this study was to assess the risk status of women 35-69 years of age using risk assessment models and the prevalence of mammography and Pap smear.The sample of this cross sectional study consisted of 227 women in 35-69 years of age who reside in Balçova district of Izmir. A questionnaire was used to collect data. Gail model and Cuzick-Tyrer model was used to assess the risk for breast cancer and model developed by Harvard School of Public Health was used for the assessment of cervical cancer risk.In this study, 52.7% of women had mammography at least once. 41.3% of the women over the age of 40 had mammography exams in the last two years. The five year risk for breast cancer was high in 15.8% of women according to Gail model and ten year risk was high in 21.7% according to Cuzick-Tyrer model. Being in 60-69 age, having low education and not being in menopause were risk factors for not having mammography according to logistic regression analysis. 52.0% of women had Pap smear at least once. The risk level in 70.0% of the women was lower than average, 22.1% was average and 7.9% was higher than average risk. As the risk of cervical cancer increased, getting Pap smear decreased. Being in 35-39 age, having less education were risk factors for not having Pap smear according to logistic regression analysis.Breast and cervical cancer screening rates are lower in Turkish women. Having less education is the strongest predictor of low utilization rates for cancer screening. Women must be educated about breast and cervical cancer screening methods and early diagnosis.Keywords: Breast cancer, cervical cancer, cancer risk models, mammography, Pap smear test.