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Minorities received fewer skin exams, exhibited less melanoma awareness
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More white patients at a hospital clinic reported receiving total body skin examinations for skin cancer compared with minority patients, who also showed less knowledge about melanoma awareness, according to recent study results.
Researchers surveyed 152 patients (average age, 44.7 years; 56% women) between April and June 2012 at a public hospital in New York. Annual income of less than $20,000 was reported by 42.1% of patients, while 30.3% of respondents did not reveal their income. Most of the patients were new referrals who previously had not seen the clinic’s dermatologists.
Eight percent of patients reported receiving previous skin cancer diagnoses, including two patients with basal cell carcinoma (BCC), four with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), three with melanoma, one with BCC and SCC and two who did not recall their diagnoses.
Sixteen percent of patients had a previous total body skin exam examination (TBSE) for cancer, while 11% reported being taught by a clinician how to perform a TBSE. Fifteen percent of patients indicated they had performed those examinations.
In racial subanalysis, 49% of white patients had received a TBSE from a physician, compared with 5% of minority patients. One of 61 Hispanic patients (2%) reported receiving a TBSE. Of the patients previously diagnosed with skin cancer, 33% performed TBSE.
While all patients demonstrated a poor ability to recognize suspicious features of melanoma, minorities, particularly Hispanics, performed worse than whites.
“Few patients engage in skin cancer screening behaviors, and their knowledge about melanoma is poor, with minorities demonstrating lower understanding than whites,” the researchers concluded. “Our findings emphasize the need for improved patient education about characteristics of melanoma, regardless of race.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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