Breast cancer in Pacific Islander women: overcoming barriers to screening and treatment

Abstract

This literature review identifies the health beliefs and practices that affect breast cancer screening and care among Pacific Islander women-specifically native Hawaiian, Samoan and Tongan women living in the continental United States-and provides suggestions for how nurses can address these issues. Several themes emerged in the literature regarding culture, language, health beliefs and health care access among Pacific Islander women. Nurses will be more successful in assisting Pacific Islander women to obtain timely breast cancer screening and treatment when they better understand Pacific Islander culture and provide culturally appropriate education materials on breast cancer.