Abstract
Introduction: Early detection of cancer can be important for successful treatment and survival. Men are more likely to delay seeking medical help for cancer symptoms than women, often resulting in later diagnosis and poor outcomes. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the psychosocial factors associated with men’s timely and delayed help-seeking for cancer symptoms, with consideration to variation between men.
Methods: A qualitative semi-structured interview study of Australian men aged over 50 (N=27). Purposive sampling was used to stratify participants by cancer history, rurality, sexuality, and marital status. Participants were recruited through social and print media, oncology social workers, community organizations, and snowball sampling. Interview schedules predominantly addressed attitudes, perceived social norms, cancer knowledge, and identity. Interview transcripts were analyzed using Theory- and Prior-Research-Driven Thematic Analysis.
Results: Findings partially support the usefulness of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as a model for understanding men’s help-seeking for cancer symptoms. Additional themes included symptom interpretation, instrumental and information support from partners, informal cancer knowledge gained from family and friends affected by cancer, as well as prioritization of health. Minor differences between men will be discussed.
Conclusions: TPB may be a useful model for understanding men’s help-seeking for cancer symptoms. Future studies could test the predictive strength of TPB constructs and additional psychosocial factors in relation to help-seeking seeking for cancer symptoms to inform the design of early detection interventions.
Methods: A qualitative semi-structured interview study of Australian men aged over 50 (N=27). Purposive sampling was used to stratify participants by cancer history, rurality, sexuality, and marital status. Participants were recruited through social and print media, oncology social workers, community organizations, and snowball sampling. Interview schedules predominantly addressed attitudes, perceived social norms, cancer knowledge, and identity. Interview transcripts were analyzed using Theory- and Prior-Research-Driven Thematic Analysis.
Results: Findings partially support the usefulness of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as a model for understanding men’s help-seeking for cancer symptoms. Additional themes included symptom interpretation, instrumental and information support from partners, informal cancer knowledge gained from family and friends affected by cancer, as well as prioritization of health. Minor differences between men will be discussed.
Conclusions: TPB may be a useful model for understanding men’s help-seeking for cancer symptoms. Future studies could test the predictive strength of TPB constructs and additional psychosocial factors in relation to help-seeking seeking for cancer symptoms to inform the design of early detection interventions.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | P551 |
| Pages (from-to) | S178 |
| Number of pages | 1 |
| Journal | International Journal of Behavioral Medicine |
| Volume | 23 |
| Issue number | Suppl. 1 |
| Early online date | Oct 2016 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Nov 2016 |
| Event | 2016 ICBM Congress - Duration: 7 Dec 2016 → … |
Keywords
- Cancer
- Early detection
- Men's health
- Help-seeking
- Behaviour
