A Promotora-administered group education intervention to promote breast and cervical cancer screening in a rural community along the U.S.-Mexico border: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is the most common neoplasm among Hispanic women. Cervical cancer has a higher incidence and mortality among Hispanic women compared with non-Hispanic White women.
OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness of a promotora-administered educational intervention to promote breast and cervical cancer screening among post-reproductive age, medically underserved Hispanic women residing along the U.S.-Mexico border.
METHODS: Women age 50 or older were eligible to participate in this intervention study. A total of 381 subjects agreed to participate. Women were randomly assigned into one of two groups, educational intervention or usual care. The primary outcomes were self-reported mammogram and Pap smear screening. Logistic regression analysis was used to compute odds ratios for comparisons between intervention and control groups.
RESULTS: Women in the intervention group were 2.0 times more likely to report having had a mammogram within the last year when compared with the usual care group (95% CI = 1.3-3.1). Likewise, women in the intervention group were 1.5 times more likely to report having a Pap smear within the last year when compared with the usual care group, although this was not statistically significant (95% CI = 0.9-2.6). In a secondary analysis, the intervention suggests a stronger effect on those that had not had a mammogram or Pap smear within the past year at baseline.
CONCLUSIONS: A promotora-based educational intervention can be used to increase breast and cervical cancer screening utilization among Hispanic women.

RCT Entities:   Population Interventions Outcomes