Abstract A14: Cancer prevention information seeking and trust among Hispanic, Native American, and non-Hispanic white cancer patients and family members.
Authors: Ginossar Tamar 
Published: August 2014

Cancer-prevention information (CPI) is essential for informed decisions about prevention, but this information is not disseminated equally between different populations. This breakdown in dissemination of CPI contributes to health disparities in outcomes of cancer. Disparities in information seeking are related to multiple barriers including lower education levels, and higher trust of physicians. In addition, research identified large gaps between non-Hispanic whites (NHW) and Hispanics, and some support to differences between NHW and Native Americans (NA). Past research documented medical mistrust among NA populations as a barrier to care, but its role in cancer prevention information seeking (CPIS) is unknown.

Cancer diagnosis is likely to increase perceived importance of CPI and motivation for CPIS, but previous research did not examine ethnic differences in this motivation, and did not explore the role of trust in CPIS of cancer patients and family members from different ethnic groups.

The goal of this study was to examine CPIS of Hispanic, NA, and NHW cancer patients and family members by exploring the perceived importance of CPI and reported CPIS; and to learn about the relationship between trust and CPIS.

Methods: Multivariate and Univariate analysis of responses to a survey administered to 249 patients and family members at a minority-serving university oncology clinic.

Results: The analysis revealed ethnic differences in perceived importance of CPI. Hispanics, and Spanish speakers in particular, were the most likely to evaluate CPI as very important, with 66% of Hispanics in general and 77% of Spanish speakers indicating that they “strongly agree” that CPI is important for them, versus 50% of NHW and 44% of NA. Education and income were not correlated with perceived importance of CPI.

However, disparities were documented in the propensity to seek CPI. NHW were most likely to seek CPI (68%), versus NA (56%) and Hispanics (50%). Only 34% of Spanish speakers reported CPIS. Education and income were positively correlated with CPIS.

Trust was related to perceived importance of CPI, and NA had slightly lower levels of trust in the medical system and providers compared to other participants.

Conclusions: This study identified different barriers for CPIS facing ethnic minorities. Hispanics, and particularly Spanish speakers, attribute the highest importance to CPI, but are the least likely to seek this information. Native Americans are facing different barriers to CPIS, including lower levels of motivation and trust. In contrast to previous research, these findings depict complicated relationship between culture, trust and CPIS. Despite disparities, rates of CPIS were higher in this population of patients and their families for all ethnic groups, compared to national studies of the general population. This finding suggests that cancer diagnosis does elicit higher motivation to seek CPI and overcome barriers to CPIS. To reduce disparities, future interventions should address the different barriers to CPIS, should be culturally-relevant in addressing trust, and capitalize on the higher motivation to access CPI among cancer patients and their families.

Citation Format: Tamar Ginossar. Cancer prevention information seeking and trust among Hispanic, Native American, and non-Hispanic white cancer patients and family members. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fifth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2012 Oct 27-30; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2012;21(10 Suppl):Abstract nr A14.