Screening for cervical and breast cancer among Caribbean immigrants

Abstract

A screening program for cervical and breast cancer, focused on immigrant Caribbean women, was carried out at neighborhood sites (churches, schools, etc.) in a low-income area of Brooklyn, New York. The yield of abnormal Pap tests was 13.3/1000 women screened; the yield of breast cancer was 2.2/1000 women examined. Approximately half of the Haitian immigrants (N=361) had no prior Pap test, compared to one-quarter of the English-speaking Caribbean immigrants (N=228) and one-tenth of the U.S.-born Black women (N=264). Only 47% of Haitian women had a regular source of health care compared to 74% of the English speaking Caribbean women and 83% of the U.S.-born Black women. Haitian women were much less likely to practice breast self-examination or to use contraception than were U.S.-born Black women. This program reveals significant needs for preventive health services among low-income Caribbean immigrant women, and demonstrates that selective neighborhood-site programs can be effective in reaching those in need.