Breast care among Latino immigrant women in the U.S.

Although the U.S. is recognized as a developed country, knowledge of how to perform a breast self-examination (BSE) and the availability and accessibility screening mammography are not evenly distributed across ethnic, racial, and socioeconomic groups. Some U.S. organizations have decreased their emphases on BSE and are strongly promoting technological advances such as mammography. Disparities in obtaining breast health care are found worldwide. In this article we present the findings of a study that was conducted in a large urban area in the Midwest of the United States, to identify factors associated with breast care in Latino immigrant women (n = 111). Limited knowledge about breast care, unemployment, and short period of residence in the U.S. were all found to be related to inadequate breast care in this group of women. These findings have global implications for health care practitioners in directing attention toward discovering factors that promote and inhibit early breast cancer detection.