• Jennifer L Hay, Kevin D McCaul, and Renee E Magnan.
• Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10022, USA. hayj@mskcc.org
• Prev Med. 2006 Jun 1; 42 (6): 401-8.

ObjectiveMany women worry about the possibility of developing breast cancer, but there is conflicting evidence concerning whether cancer worry acts as a facilitator or inhibitor of breast cancer screening.MethodWe conducted a meta-analysis of 12 prospective studies that measured worry about breast cancer at baseline and subsequent breast self-examination (BSE) or mammography utilization among 3342 high-risk and general population women.ResultsThe data consistently show that breast cancer worry has a small but reliable (r = 0.12) association with breast cancer screening behavior, such that greater worry predicts a greater likelihood of screening. We also found that the means for breast cancer worry were consistently in the lower third of the scales, despite differences in measurement approaches, sample utilization, or the date that the study was conducted.ConclusionThe meta-analysis supports the contention that breast cancer worry may motivate screening behavior, and that high levels of breast cancer worry are uncommon.

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