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
. 2005 Apr;2(2):A11.
Epub 2005 Mar 15.

Development of a brief survey on colon cancer screening knowledge and attitudes among veterans

Michael S Wolf  1 , Alfred Rademaker, Charles L Bennett, M Rosario Ferreira, Nancy C Dolan, Terry C Davis, Franklin Medio, Dachao Liu, June Lee, Marian Fitzgibbon
Affiliations

Development of a brief survey on colon cancer screening knowledge and attitudes among veterans

Michael S Wolf et al. Prev Chronic Dis. 2005 Apr.

Abstract

Introduction: Poor knowledge of and negative attitudes toward available screening tests may account in part for colorectal cancer screening rates being the lowest among 17 quality measures reported for the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system, the largest integrated health system in the United States. The purpose of this study was to develop a brief assessment tool to evaluate knowledge and attitudes among veterans toward colorectal cancer screening options.

Methods: A 44-item questionnaire was developed to assess knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about colorectal cancer and screening and was then administered as part of an ongoing randomized controlled trial among 388 veterans receiving care in a general medicine clinic. Sixteen candidate items on colorectal cancer knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs were selected for further evaluation using principal components analysis. Two sets of items were then further analyzed.

Results: Because the Cronbach alpha for beliefs was low (alpha = 0.06), the beliefs subscale was deleted from further consideration. The final scale consisted of seven items: a four-item attitude subscale (alpha = 0.73) and a three-item knowledge subscale (alpha = 0.59). Twelve-month follow-up data were used to evaluate predictive validity; improved knowledge and attitudes were significantly associated with completion of flexible sigmoidoscopy (P = .004) and completion of either flexible sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy (P = .02).

Conclusion: The two-factor scale offers a parsimonious and reliable measure of colorectal cancer screening knowledge and attitudes among veterans. This colorectal Cancer Screening Survey (CSS) may especially be useful as an evaluative tool in developing and testing of interventions designed to improve screening rates within this population.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. American Cancer Society . Cancer Facts and Figures. American Cancer Society; Atlanta (GA): 2005.
    1. U.S. Preventive Services Task Force . The guide to clinical preventive services: report of the United States Preventive Services Task Force. (3rd ed.) McLean (VA): International Medical Publishing, Inc.; Jan, 2002.
    1. Pignone M, Rich M, Teutsch SM, Berg AO, Lohr KN. Screening for colorectal cancer in adults at average risk: a summary of the evidence for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Ann Intern Med. 2002;137:132–141. - PubMed
    1. Byers T, Levin B, Rothenberger D, Dodd GD, Smith RA. American Cancer Society guidelines for screening and surveillance for early detection of colorectal polyps and cancer: update 1997. American Cancer Society Detection and Treatment Advisory Group on Colorectal Cancer. CA Cancer J Clin. 1997;47:154–160. - PubMed
    1. Screening for colorectal cancer – United States, 1997. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 1999 Feb 19;48(6):116–121. - PubMed

Publication types