Issue addressed:
People's decisions about whether to participate in cancer screening and to seek treatment are related to their perceptions of the survivability of cancer. However, there is little empirical evidence to suggest people's awareness of the survivability of different cancers. The object of the present study was to determine people's estimates of the survivability of 10 cancers.
Methods:
In 2001, data were collected via computer-assisted telephone interviews with 1,501 randomly selected metropolitan and rural Western Australian adults. Participants were presented with a list of 10 cancers. Half the sample was asked to nominate the three most survivable, and half was asked to nominate the three least survivable cancers.
Results:
Participants' rankings of the 10 cancers in terms of perceived survivability were consistent with cancer registry data, with the exception of bone cancer which was underrated. Respondents' average estimates of five-year survival rates were also accurate (±2-6%) for cancers with relatively high survival rates such as breast, cervical, prostate, and other skin cancers, with the exception of melanoma, which was underestimated (20%). However, average estimated survival rates for cancers with low survivability, such as leukaemia, lung, and stomach cancers, were substantially overestimated, being 31%, 38% and 43% higher respectively.
Conclusion:
Western Australians appear to have a reasonable understanding of the relative survivability of various cancers but a poorer appreciation of actual survival rates.
So what?
Public education regarding the very low survival rate of lung cancer may provide novel motivation for smokers to quit, or non-smokers not to start. Conversely, education regarding the high survival rates of other cancers, such as melanoma, may have the potential to reduce fears and to promote earlier presentation and greater participation in cancer screening.
Key words:
Cancer, screening, survivability, risk perceptions
Health Promotion Journal of Australia 2005;16:124-8
