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Cancer risk factors, diagnosis and sexual identity in the Australian longitudinal study of women's health

journal contribution
posted on 2015-09-01, 00:00 authored by Rhonda Brown, R McNair, L Szalacha, Trish LivingstonTrish Livingston, T Hughes
PURPOSE: We sought to examine cancer diagnosis, cancer treatment, and related risk factors among Australian, middle-aged, exclusively heterosexual women compared with sexual minority women (SMW; mainly heterosexual, bisexual, mainly lesbian, and lesbian). METHODS: Secondary data analysis of the Australian Longitudinal Study of Women's Health for women born in 1946 through 1951 (n = 10,451) included bivariate tests (i.e., contingency table analyses, independent t tests). RESULTS: SMW did not have significantly higher cancer diagnoses compared with exclusively heterosexual women, although they were more likely to report never having had a mammogram or pap smear. SMW were also significantly more likely to be high-risk drinkers (11.1% vs. 6.8%; p < .05), current smokers (15.1% vs. 8.3%; p < .001), report significantly higher rates of depression (mean ± SD; 6.4 ± 5.5 vs. 5.4 ± 5.1; p < .01.), have experienced physical abuse (10.2% vs. 5.1%; p < .001), and been in a violent relationship (27.2% vs. 12.8%; p < .001). CONCLUSION: SMW had higher rates of several known cancer risk factors, ostensibly placing them at higher risk of cancer as well as chronic health conditions. Further research is needed to determine whether increased risk results in increased cancer as these women age, and to inform the development of interventions to reduce the risk of disease for SMW.

History

Journal

Women's health issues

Volume

25

Issue

5

Season

September-October

Pagination

509 - 516

Publisher

Elsevier

Location

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

ISSN

1049-3867

eISSN

1878-4321

Language

eng

Publication classification

C Journal article; C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2015, Elsevier

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