Six focus groups were conducted to determine concerns, attitudes, and beliefs about prostate cancer and prostate cancer screening that may serve as barriers to seeking testing. Participants were voluntarily recruited to represent all income and education levels. They were recruited from various community settings and groups, such as a moderately large Pentecostal Church, Durham Police Department, Durham Sanitation Employees, a housing project, a community outreach program, and a fraternity comprised of college educated men. Written consent was obtained for focus group participation. Discussions in the groups were tape recorded for summarization.
Qualitative analysis is underway.
Findings from the focus groups will be used to define strategies to increase the number of African American men who attend for the first time an annual free prostate cancer mass screening clinic. Information was provided to improve the men's knowledge of prostate cancer and screening issues, with an intention to enhance informed decision-making about prostate cancer screening. It is anticipated that a tracking system will provide useful information to predict who attends mass screening clinics, and how men use the results for early diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer when warranted. Focus group discussions should reveal information useful to defining strategies to increase prostate cancer screening among African American men. Dr. Marva Mizell Price conducts community based research focused on social and cultural facilitators and barriers for health seeking to prevent reproductive related cancers.