Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Clinical Trial
. 2002 May 1;94(9):670-7.
doi: 10.1093/jnci/94.9.670.

A randomized controlled trial of interventions to promote cervical cancer screening among Chinese women in North America

Victoria M Taylor  1 , T Gregory Hislop, J Carey Jackson, Shin-Ping Tu, Yutaka Yasui, Stephen M Schwartz, Chong Teh, Alan Kuniyuki, Elizabeth Acorda, Ann Marchand, Beti Thompson
Affiliations
Clinical Trial

A randomized controlled trial of interventions to promote cervical cancer screening among Chinese women in North America

Victoria M Taylor et al. J Natl Cancer Inst. .

Abstract

Background: North American Chinese women have lower levels of Papanicolaou (Pap) testing than other population subgroups. We conducted a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of two alternative cervical cancer screening interventions for Chinese women living in North America.

Methods: Four hundred and eighty-two Pap testing underutilizers were identified from community-based surveys of Chinese women conducted in Seattle, Washington, and Vancouver, British Columbia. These women were randomly assigned to one of two experimental arms or control status. Several Chinese-language materials were used in both experimental arms: an education-entertainment video, a motivational pamphlet, an educational brochure, and a fact sheet. Women in the first experimental group (outreach worker intervention) received the materials, as well as tailored counseling and logistic assistance, during home visits by trilingual, bicultural outreach workers. Those in the second experimental group (direct mail intervention) received the materials by mail. The control group received usual care. Follow-up surveys were completed 6 months after randomization to ascertain participants' Pap testing behavior. All statistical tests were two-sided.

Results: A total of 402 women responded to the follow-up survey (83% response rate). Of these women, 50 (39%) of the 129 women in the outreach group, 35 (25%) of the 139 women in the direct mail group, and 20 (15%) of the 134 women in the control group reported Pap testing in the interval between randomization and follow-up data collection (P<.001 for outreach worker versus control, P =.03 for direct mail versus control, and P =.02 for outreach worker versus direct mail). Intervention effects were greater in Vancouver than in Seattle.

Conclusion: Culturally and linguistically appropriate interventions may improve Pap testing levels among Chinese women in North America.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Lin-Fu JS. Asian and Pacific Islander Americans: an overview of demographic characteristics and health care issues. Asian Am Pac Isl J Health. 1993;1:20–36. - PubMed
    1. Chen MS, Zaharlich A, Kuun P, Guthrie R. Implementation of the indigenous model for health education programming among Asian minorities: beyond theory and into practice. J Health Educ. 1992;23:400–3.
    1. Costa R, Renaud V. The Chinese in Canada. Can Social Trends. 1995;Winter:22–6.
    1. U.S. Department of Commerce. We the Asian Americans. Washington (DC): U.S. Department of Commerce; 1993.
    1. Lasky EM, Martz CH. The Asian/Pacific Islander population in the United States: cultural perspectives and their relationship to cancer prevention and early detection. In: Frank-Stomberg M, Olsen SJ, editors. Cancer prevention in minority populations—cultural perspectives for health care professionals. St. Louis (MO): Mosby; 1993.

Publication types