DO GROUPS OF WOMEN AGED 50 TO 75 MATCH THE NATIONAL AVERAGE MAMMOGRAPHY RATE

Context: As mammography rates increase, an important question is how c losely groups of women match or do not match the national-level, avera ge screening percentage. Objective: This study employed a classificati on-tree methodology to combine individual risk factors from multiple l ogistic regression, in order to more comprehensively define groups of women less (or more) likely to be screened. Design/Setting: This repor t was a secondary data analysis drawing on data from the 1992 National Health Interview Sun ey, Cancer Control Supplement (NHIS-CCS). Partic ipants: Analyses examined mammography status of women aged 50-75 (n = 1,727). Main Outcome Measure: The dependent variable was hating a scre ening mammogram in the past 2 years. Multiple logistic regression (SUD AAN) was conducted first to select significant correlates of screening . A classification-tree analysis (CHAID subroutine of SPSS) was then u sed to combine the significant correlates into exclusive and exhaustiv e subgroups. Results: A total of 13 subgroups were identified, of whic h only six approximated the overall population screening rate. The low est screening occurred in small clusters of women, which, when added t ogether, formed a larger percentage of the population who were not scr eened within the past 2 years. Conclusions: Efforts to increase mammog raphy may face the challenge of identifying relatively small pockets o f women and addressing their individual barriers. Further work should be done to find efficient ways to combine individual risk factors into groups at risk for not being screened.