Most Women Unaware Of Proper Screenings

Even with funding cuts, as seen with Michigan, the majority of U.S. women are unaware of the recommended screening practices for cervical and breast cancer, according to recent data from the Health Information National Trends Survey, CQ HealthBeat reports. The 2005 survey finds that 57% of female participants reported being unaware of the need to screen for breast cancer with mammograms beginning at age 40. Three-quarters of female participants responded that their health care provider had recommended receiving a mammogram, and 74% said that they had received a mammogram within the recommended time frame. In addition, a majority of women who participated in the survey responded that they were not aware of the need to screen for cervical cancer with a Pap test every three years as opposed to receiving an annual Pap test. Eighty-seven percent of female participants who received pap tests responded that they had undergone the procedure as part of an annual examination, and 61% of women in the survey said that they did not know what the human papillomavirus is. HPV infection with strains 16 and 18 together cause about 70% of cervical cancer cases.