Attitudes and beliefs of primary care physicians regarding prostate and colorectal cancer screening in a rural state

Screening for prostate cancer (PC) is paradoxically more prevalent than for colorectal cancer (CRC). Primary care physicians (PCPs) in Vermont were surveyed concerning PC and CRC screening. Aggressive screening for PC and CRC remains widespread. PCPs reported that they controlled screening decisions...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of cancer education Vol. 20; no. 3; p. 167
Main Authors Philips, George K, Reinier, Kyndaron, Ashikaga, Takamaru, Luebbers, Robert A
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England 01.09.2005
Subjects
Adult
Aged
Attitude of Health Personnel
Colorectal Neoplasms - blood
Colorectal Neoplasms - diagnosis
Colorectal Neoplasms - prevention & control
Digital Rectal Examination
Female
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Male
Mass Screening
Middle Aged
Physicians, Family - statistics & numerical data
Practice Patterns, Physicians
Prostate-Specific Antigen - blood
Prostatic Neoplasms - diagnosis
Prostatic Neoplasms - immunology
Prostatic Neoplasms - prevention & control
Rural Health
Surveys and Questionnaires
Vermont - epidemiology
Vermont
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Summary:Screening for prostate cancer (PC) is paradoxically more prevalent than for colorectal cancer (CRC). Primary care physicians (PCPs) in Vermont were surveyed concerning PC and CRC screening. Aggressive screening for PC and CRC remains widespread. PCPs reported that they controlled screening decisions for the majority of their patients. A belief that evidence favored PC screening for no patients was associated with less aggressive screening for PC as well as CRC. Aggressive screening behavior is frequent, physician-driven and correlates with physician beliefs. Better education of PCPs is the key to changing screening behavior.
ISSN:0885-8195
DOI:10.1207/s15430154jce2003_11