White women more likely to have cervical screenings

White British women are far more likely to have had a cervical screening than women from other ethnic backgrounds according to a new report.

New research has claimed wealth and ethnicity are linked to whether women have regular breast and cervical screenings during their lifetimes.

The study, published on BMJ online, claims for example that white British women are more likely to have had a cervical screening and women who own a car and/or a home are more likely to have had a mammogram.

The authors of the research claim, therefore, that information on patient's ethnicity and some indicators of their socio-economic status should regularly be collected to allow clinicians to document inequalities in health screening.

Dr Lesley Walker, director of cancer information at Cancer Research UK, said: "It’s really worrying that so many women from ethnic minority groups don’t go for screening. We know screening saves lives so it’s crucial that women go when invited.

"This Cancer Research UK study, published in the BMJ, is important in highlighting the need to target health messages and in understanding the best ways to do so.

"Next week, Cancer Research UK will be publishing the first national report that looks at cancer incidence among different ethnic groups. This is the first step in an important project that will help to address inequalities like this.

"Once we know which groups are more likely to get cancer and die from the disease, we can target public health campaigns – like the message that screening saves lives – to their communities. We need to start helping to change attitudes and improving access to cancer services."