Adults with disabilities had lower breast and cervical cancer screening rates than adults without disabilities, according to a study published Sept. 10 in Cancer.
Researchers from Atlanta-based American Cancer Society analyzed 2021 and 2023 National Health Interview Survey data to assess breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screening by type and severity of disability.
A separate study, published Oct. 5 in JAMA Network Open, analyzed health records from more than 2.2 million women to assess how physical disability and college attendance relate to cervical cancer screening. That study was led by researchers from Ann Arbor-based University of Michigan.
Here are five notes from the studies:
- Adults with substantial self-care difficulties had the lowest screening rates: 52% received breast cancer screening and 37% received cervical cancer screening.
Among adults with no self-care difficulties, those rates were 79% and 78%.
Breast and cervical screening rates also fell as vision, mobility or cognitive difficulties grew more severe. - Only 35% of women with substantial communication difficulties received cervical cancer screening. The rate among women with no communication difficulties was 78%. Communication difficulties had no link to breast or colorectal screening.
- Among adults with substantial mobility difficulties, 22% used at-home stool testing for colorectal cancer, higher than the 16% of adults with no mobility difficulties. Stool testing was also more common among adults with some self-care, mobility or vision difficulties.
- In the University of Michigan study, 63.5% of women with physical disabilities and 70.9% of women without physical disabilities received cervical cancer screening, both below the federal Healthy People 2030 goal of 79.2%.
At ages 21-29, women with physical disabilities were least likely to be screened relative to women without physical disabilities, with the difference shrinking with age. - Among women who attended some college, those with physical disabilities were about as likely to be screened as those without.
Read the full Cancer study here and the JAMA Network Open study here.
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