Beliefs about the PAP Smear and Cervical Cancer Screening among Vietnamese Women

描述（由申请人提供）：子宫颈癌几乎完全可以通过适当的筛查和随访来预防。然而，宫颈癌对越南妇女来说仍然是一个严重的健康问题，越南妇女患宫颈癌的比率是美国白人妇女的五倍。研究发现，关于谦虚的文化规范、对预防行为和癌症的信念，以及对子宫颈抹片检查目的缺乏了解，都影响了越南妇女寻求宫颈癌筛查的决定。然而，很少有研究a)使用定性方法来确保妇女自己确定筛查的主要障碍b)调查越南妇女对巴氏试验及其在该人群中的使用的信念。在一个社区组织的倡议下，通过与学术伙伴合作的过程，我们建议调查越南社区对宫颈癌筛查的看法。我们的长期目标是设计和实施一种针对不同文化的干预措施，以增加越南妇女的宫颈癌筛查。本定性研究的目的是探讨越南妇女对子宫颈抹片检查的信念范围。所获得的知识将用于未来调查的发展，以测试信念与筛查行为之间的关系，并制定随机对照试验干预措施，以改善对高危人群的筛查。具体而言，我们将1)探讨越南妇女对子宫颈抹片检查的信念和态度，2)探讨越南妇女对子宫颈抹片检查的信念对筛查行为的影响，3)探讨曾做过子宫颈抹片检查和从未做过子宫颈抹片检查的越南妇女对子宫颈抹片检查的信念之间的差异，以及4)与当地越南社区合作，根据研究结果制定试点干预措施。我们将对通过社区组织招募的参与者进行关键信息提供者访谈、深度访谈和焦点小组讨论，以确定对子宫颈抹片检查的各种看法，并制定试点干预措施。我们的定性方法是探索性研究的理想选择，因为它将为关于子宫颈抹片检查的基于文化的信念提供适当的背景，并为未来的研究产生假设。这项研究的结果将为制定旨在减少越南人口宫颈癌的未来干预措施奠定基础。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Cervical cancer is almost entirely preventable through appropriate screening and follow-up. Yet cervical cancer continues to be a serious health problem for Vietnamese women, who experience cervical cancer at rates five times that of white women in the United States. Studies have found that cultural norms about modesty, beliefs about preventive behavior and about cancer, and lack of knowledge about the purpose of the Pap smear all impact Vietnamese women's decisions to seek cervical cancer screening. However, few studies have a) used qualitative methods to ensure that the women themselves identify salient barriers to screening b) investigated Vietnamese women's beliefs about the Pap test and its uses within this population. With the initiative of a community-based organization, through a process of collaboration with academic partners, we propose to investigate beliefs about cervical cancer screening in the Vietnamese community. Our long-term goal is to design and implement a culturally tailored intervention that will increase cervical cancer screening among Vietnamese women. The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the range of beliefs about the Pap smear held by Vietnamese women. The knowledge gained will be used in the development of future surveys to test the relationship between beliefs and screening behavior, and to develop a randomized controlled trial intervention to improve screening with this at risk population. Specifically, we will 1) explore Vietnamese women's beliefs and attitudes about the Pap smear, 2) explore the impact of Vietnamese women's beliefs about the Pap smear on screening behaviors, 3) explore differences between beliefs about the Pap smear held by Vietnamese women who have had and never had a Pap smear, and 4) collaborate with the local Vietnamese community to develop a pilot intervention based on the results of the study. We will conduct Key Informant interviews, in-depth interviews, and focus groups with participants recruited through a community-based organization to identify the range of beliefs about the Pap smear and develop a pilot intervention. Our qualitative approach is ideal for exploratory studies as it will provide appropriate context for culturally-based beliefs about the Pap smear and generate hypothesis for future research. The results of the study will lay the groundwork for developing future interventions designed to reduce cervical cancer with the Vietnamese population.