Factors related to mammography adherence among women in Brazil: A scoping review

Comprehensive diagnosis of advanced-stage breast cancer: exploring detection methods, molecular subtypes, and demographic influences - A cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Brazil faces notable Breast Cancer (BC) mortality despite lower incidence rates versus developed countries. Despite guidelines from medical societies, Brazilian public policy recommends biennial mammographic screening for women aged 50 to 69. This study investigates sociodemographic and clinical factors related to BC detection methods and clinical stage at diagnosis.

METHODS

The authors conducted a cross-sectional study at a São Paulo tertiary hospital. Patients were divided into 'symptomatic' and 'mammographic' detection groups. Bivariate analyses by detection method and clinical stage compared groups' profiles in terms of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Poisson regression analyses assessed sociodemographic and molecular subtypes´ influence on "mammographic detection" prevalence and "advanced-stage BC", reporting prevalence ratios and 95 % Confidence Intervals.

RESULTS

The authors studied 1,536 BC patients admitted from January 2016 to December 2017. The "mammographic detection" group had a higher proportion of patients aged 50‒69 years (62.9 % vs. 44.1 %), white race (63.3 % vs. 51.6 %), Catholic religion (58.2 % vs. 51.1 %), and Luminal A subtype (25.2 % vs. 13.2 %) compared to the "symptomatic detection" group. Patients with early-stage disease were more likely to have higher education levels (8.1 % vs. 5.5 %) and be married (39.8 % vs. 46.6 %) compared to those with advanced-stage. Molecular subtypes were significantly associated with the detection method and stage. The prevalence of advanced-stage disease in "mammographic" (n=313) and "symptomatic" (n=1191) groups was 18.5 % and 55 %, respectively . Mammographic detection significantly reduced advanced-stage BC prevalence (PR = 0.40, 95 % CI 0.31‒0.51).

CONCLUSION

Mammographic detection reduces advanced-stage breast cancer prevalence in Brazil, emphasizing the importance of regular screenings, especially among at-risk sociodemographic groups. Enhancing mammographic screening accessibility, lowering the starting age to 40, and extending coverage to include annual mammograms can significantly lower breast cancer mortality in Brazil, benefiting public health and patient outcomes.

Inequality by Skin Color in Breast Cancer Screening in Brazil: a Differences-in-Differences Analysis of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer type and the first in mortality among Brazilian women. Mammograms are one of the main early diagnosis strategies. National breast cancer screening coverage is still low. Brazil's low screening coverage is due to high mammography access inequality. Skin color defines healthcare access differences. Our article explores the natural event of the COVID-19 pandemic to analyze differences in screening rates between two racial groups of women through the application of the differences in differences (DiD) estimator. The results indicate that BBI women (Black, Brown, and Indigenous Brazilian) have lower screening rates than WY women (White and Yellow) and that the pandemic reduced the difference between these two groups due to the lower number of mammograms performed by WY women. It is believed that the information channel can explain much of this result. The BA population, wealthier and more educated, may have had additional information about COVID-19 and its consequences, as well as an increased likelihood of working remotely and practicing social distance. Structural racism causes many social indicators to be correlated with inequality of access to mammography and negatively impacts health conditions for BBI women. Public policies are necessary for equal access to breast cancer screening for the most vulnerable women.

Temporal Evolution and Associated Factors of Adherence to Mammography Screening among Women in Spain: Results from Two National Health Surveys (2017-2020)

Ensuring equity in cancer screening is recommended by the European Commission. Despite the fact that breast cancer screening is a free population-based program in Spain, there remains considerable variation in the adherence to screening rate among population groups. This study was designed to describe the adherence of breast cancer screening in women in Spain, to evaluate the evolution in the period from 2017 to 2020, and to determine the variables that influence choosing to undergo breast cancer screening. A nationwide cross-sectional study with 7220 females aged 50-69 years from the 2017 Spanish National Health Survey and the 2020 European Health Survey for Spain was performed. We investigated mammography uptake rates, with socio-demographic factors, lifestyle habits, and health-related characteristics as independent variables. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify the associated factors of mammography adherence. Of the women, 78% had undergone mammography in the previous two years, and there was a significant decrease in the uptake rate for breast cancer screening from 2017 (81.23%) to 2020 (74.68%) (p < 0.001). Educational level, marital status, residential location, nationality, smoking status, alcohol consumption, and leisure-time physical activity were all associated factors of mammography uptake.

Factors that Affect Performance of Clinical Breast Examination and Mammography Screening among Brazilian Women

BACKGROUND

In the Brazilian health system, community health facilities consist of multidisciplinary teams that focus on family health, whereas health centers treat mainly illnesses of registered patients. In the present study we compared socio-economic factors and performance of mammography screening (MS) and clinical breast exam (CBE),  respectively, among women who used both types of public health service centers.

METHODS

The present study included 180 women aged ≥40 years, who used different health service centers within the same municipal district. Of all 180 women, 110 (41.1%) and 70 (38.9%) used a health center and a community health facility. Logistic regression analysis was performed to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and confidence intervals (CIs) of variables.

RESULTS

Regression modeling indicated that women who used the community health facility, performed annual MS 9.52 (OR= 0.105; 95%CI: 0.03- 0.36) times more often (p <0.001). In this model retirement and gynecological service use ≤ each second year, increased annual MS performance 8.16 (95%CI: 1.55- 54.32) and 7.78 (95%CI: 2.54- 23.79) times (p <0.001; p <0.001). Among 113 (62.8%) women who reported strong fear of MS, the chance of its performance was 35.71 (OR= 0.028; 95%CI: 0.02- 0.32) times decreased (p= 0.05). In a second model use of gynecological service ≤ each second year, increased chance of annual CBE performance 7.92 (95%CI: 3.25- 19.29) times (p <0.001). Women who used the community health facility performed annual and bi-annual CBE 2.90 (OR= 0.345; 95%CI: 0.14- 0.86) and 2.97 (OR= 0.337; 95%CI: 0.12- 0.92) times more often, compared to women who used the health center (p =0.030).

CONCLUSIONS

Performance of MS and CBE varied both considerable among women who used different types of health service centers. Gynecological service use, fear and socioeconomic variables, additionally influenced regular performance of MS and CBE.

Cancer inequalities in incidence and mortality in the State of São Paulo, Brazil 2001-17

BACKGROUND

Cancer disparities exist between and within countries; we sought to compare cancer-specific incidence and mortality according to area-level socioeconomic status (SES) in the State of São Paulo, Brazil.

METHODS

Cancer cases diagnosed 2003-2017 in the Barretos region and 2001-2015 in the municipality of São Paulo were obtained from the respective cancer registries. Corresponding cancer deaths were obtained from a Brazilian public government database. Age-standardized rates for all cancer combined and the six most common cancers were calculated by SES quartiles.

RESULTS

There were 14,628 cancer cases and 7513 cancer deaths in Barretos, and 472,712 corresponding cases and 194,705 deaths in São Paulo. A clear SES-cancer gradient was seen in São Paulo, with rates varying from 188.4 to 333.1 in low to high SES areas, respectively. There was a lesser social gradient for mortality, with rates in low to high SES areas ranging from 86.4 to 98.0 in Barretos, and from 99.2 to 100.1 in São Paulo. The magnitude of the incidence rates rose markedly with increasing SES in São Paulo city for colorectal, lung, female breast, and prostate cancer. Conversely, both cervical cancer incidence and mortality rose with lower levels of SES in both regions.

CONCLUSIONS

A clear SES association was seen for cancers of the prostate, female breast, colorectum, and lung for São Paulo. This study offers a better understanding of the cancer incidence and mortality profile according to SES within a highly populated Brazilian state.

Factors associated with the proportion of abnormal results in screening mammograms: ecological study

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the factors associated with the proportion of abnormal results in screening mammograms.

METHODS

Ecological study, with data from DATASUS/SISCAN, Atlas Brasil do Desenvolvimento Humano, Fundação SEADE, and Sistema e-Gestor, from 2016 to 2019, of women aged 50 to 69 years in the 645 municipalities of São Paulo (Brazil). Independent variables were associated with the outcome: proportion of unsatisfactory coverage of abnormal test results (Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System - BI-RADS® 0, 4 and 5 proportion >10% of tests performed). Multiple Poisson regression was used.

RESULTS

Higher proportion of screening mammography (PR=1.20; 95%CI: 1.00;1.45), higher percentage of poor (PR=1.20; 95%CI: 1.07;1.36), low (PR=1.57; 95%CI: 1.38;1.78) and medium coverage of the Family Health Strategy (ESF) (PR=1.30; 95%CI: 1.09;1.52) were associated to the outcome.

CONCLUSION

Socioeconomic and FHS coverage factors mediate the proportion of mammograms with abnormal results in public health services. Therefore, they are important aspects in the fight against breast cancer.

Factors related to mammography adherence among women in Brazil: A scoping review

AIM

To explore and synthesize the literature on factors related to mammography screening adherence among women in Brazil.

DESIGN

A scoping review.

METHODS

We searched 11 databases for studies published between 2006-January 2020. All identified articles were screened, and data were extracted from eligible studies. We used the UK Government Social Research Service weight of evidence appraisal tool to appraise the quality of the included study.

RESULTS

From a total of 1,384 identified articles, 22 were retained. All included studies used quantitative, non-experimental methods and all but two studies used cross-sectional data. Quality of evidence varied across studies. We identified 41 factors that were investigated across the set of studies. Demographic and socio-economic factors were the most commonly investigated, with older age, urban residence, living in the southeast of Brazil, higher level of education, higher income and private health insurance most consistently associated with mammography adherence.