breast cancer screening<\/a> than\u00a0their white female counterparts. Focus groups and interviews were conducted\u00a0with 47\u00a0Black\u00a0African and\u00a0Caribbean\u00a0women aged\u00a0between\u00a050\u201371, the age group routinely invited for NHS breast screening,\u00a0to learn why only\u00a045 percent of Black women take part in screening compared to 63 percent of white women.\u00a0<\/p>\nLead author of the paper\u202fAnietie Aliu, a Postgraduate Researcher\u00a0at the University of Surrey\u202fand a\u00a0Registered\u00a0Nurse,\u202fsaid:\u202f<\/p>\n
“Diagnosing\u202fbreast cancer early can dramatically improve a person’s chance of survival. Breast cancer screening plays\u202fan important role\u202fin this\u00a0by\u202fidentifying\u202fthe cancer\u202fand ensuring a person receives speedy treatment.\u202f<\/p>\n
“Despite the importance of screening,\u202fBlack women are less likely to attend appointments than white females. This puts them at risk of a potential cancer being diagnosed late and spreading to other areas of the body. We need\u00a0to\u00a0understand\u202fwhat is preventing\u00a0Black women from attending these appointments and help\u202fidentify\u202fways to remove such barriers.”\u202f<\/p>\n
The study\u00a0found\u00a0a need to increase\u00a0awareness of breast\u00a0cancer\u00a0screening, especially for women who\u00a0are\u00a0less familiar with this service. Some women, particularly those born outside the UK, had limited knowledge of breast screening before receiving their first invitation. Others questioned why screening was needed when they had no symptoms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The\u00a0importance of trusted conversations\u00a0amongst this group\u00a0was also\u00a0identified.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Researchers found that some Black women expected their GPs to talk to them about breast screening, particularly before they reached screening age. Although breast screening is organised through national screening services, researchers note\u00a0that GPs often have\u00a0established\u00a0relationships with patients and may be better placed to provide brief, opportunistic advice about preventive care, including breast\u00a0screening\u00a0information\u00a0to women.\u00a0<\/p>\n
To improve knowledge and attendance at screening appointments, participants\u00a0suggested stronger links between GP practices, breast screening\u00a0services\u00a0and Black community champions, so women can receive trusted information, ask\u00a0questions\u00a0and feel reassured.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Researchers also found that\u202ffaith and religious beliefs influenced\u202fthe\u202fdecision-making\u202fof some of the women.\u202fFor instance, some Black African Christians\u202fmaintained\u202fthat illness,\u00a0including cancer,\u00a0was not\u202fpermitted\u202fby God in their bodies,\u202fwhilst,\u00a0in contrast,\u202fothers saw screening as a personal choice that does not conflict with Christian faith.\u202f\u202f<\/p>\n
Women from the Muslim faith noted the importance of\u202findicating\u202ftheir religion in the medical appointment form\u202fto\u202fguarantee a female mammographer\u202fhighlighting that religious beliefs\u202fcan play\u202fa role in a woman’s decision to attend screening.\u202f<\/p>\n
Anietie Aliu\u00a0added:\u00a0<\/p>\n
“Breast screening can save lives, but our findings show that attendance is shaped by multiple factors, not just awareness, although awareness\u00a0remains\u00a0important. Women need\u00a0relatable\u00a0screening information, reassurance, flexible\u00a0appointments\u00a0and services that are accessible within their communities. Many felt that invitation letters were too formal, and that leaflets and media imagery did not reflect them, making it harder to relate to screening.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dr Afrodita Marcu, a\u00a0Senior\u00a0Research fellow\u00a0at the University of\u00a0Surrey\u00a0and member of the research team added:\u00a0<\/p>\n
“We need a more collaborative approach, where primary care, screening services and community voices work together to support women before, during and after the invitation.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
Researchers note that\u00a0future interventions\u00a0for breast cancer screening\u00a0need\u00a0to be designed with Black women, rather than for them. They emphasise\u00a0that user-friendly, culturally relevant resources developed in partnership with communities, healthcare professionals and screening services could help improve understanding, reduce\u00a0fear\u00a0and make breast screening feel more accessible and reassuring.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dr Robert Kerrison, Associate Professor of Cancer Care at the University of Surrey, also part of the research team,\u00a0said:\u00a0<\/p>\n
“There is no question that breast screening can be lifesaving, but we need to make it easier for women to understand, access and feel reassured by the programme. This means improving communication, addressing practical\u00a0barriers\u00a0and making sure healthcare professionals and community partners are supported to provide clear and trusted information.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
Building on these findings, the research team has also explored healthcare professionals’ perspectives and worked with stakeholders to develop user-friendly intervention materials with Black women.\u00a0Researchers believe\u00a0this kind of co-designed approach is important because it ensures that breast screening messages are culturally relevant,\u00a0practical\u00a0and shaped by the people they are intended to support.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Source:<\/p>\n
Journal reference:<\/p>\n
DOI:\u00a010.1038\/s41416-026-03551-6<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Black African\u00a0and\u00a0Black Caribbean\u00a0women in the UK want clearer\u00a0and\u00a0more\u00a0accessible information about breast cancer screening, according to a\u00a0study from the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":36902,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[1239,258,103,396,61,60,89],"class_list":["post-552044","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-breast-cancer","tag-cancer","tag-health","tag-healthcare","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-research"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/552044","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=552044"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/552044\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36902"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=552044"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=552044"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=552044"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}