Effect of religiosity/spirituality on ovarian cancer diagnosis in African American women

New Rochelle, NY, December 5, 2018–An examination of data from a multi-center case-control study of ovarian cancer in African American women found that women who reported higher levels of religiosity/spirituality had increased odds of stage III-IV ovarian cancer at diagnosis. Agreement with cultural/folk belief statements related to cancer was not associated with cancer stage at diagnosis. The full study findings are described in an article published in Journal of Women’s Health, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. Click here to read the full-text article free on the Journal of Women’s Health website until January 5, 2019.

In the article, entitled “Effect of Cultural, Folk, and Religious Beliefs and Practices on Delays in Diagnosis in Ovarian Cancer in African American Women,” the researchers examined whether specific cultural/folk beliefs, religious practices, and perceived spirituality were associated with delays in diagnosis of ovarian cancer as indicated by later cancer stage at diagnosis or longer symptom duration before diagnosis. Cultural/folk beliefs and religiosity/spirituality were not associated consistently with symptom duration before diagnosis.

Patricia G. Moorman, PhD, Duke University (Durham, NC) coauthored the article with colleagues from the University of South Carolina (Columbia), Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey (New Brunswick), Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland, OH), Baylor College of Medicine (Houston, TX), Wayne State University (Detroit, MI), University of Alabama-Birmingham, Medical University of South Carolina (Charleston), Moffitt Cancer Center (Tampa, FL), University of Virginia (Charlottesville), Louisiana State University (New Orleans), Hunter Holmes McGuire Veterans Affairs Medical Center (Richmond, VA), and the University of Tennessee (Knoxville).

“Although cultural/folk beliefs related to cancer were not associated with cancer stage in this study, Dr. Moorman and colleagues found that these beliefs were prevalent among the women and may have influenced their decisions to seek treatment for cancer,” states Susan G. Kornstein, MD, Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Women’s Health and Executive Director of the Virginia Commonwealth University Institute for Women’s Health, Richmond, VA. “Increasing awareness among physicians about cultural and folk beliefs related to cancer, improving patient-provider communication about these beliefs, and involving churches in health education interventions may lead to better outcomes.”

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Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Cancer Institute under Award Number R01CA142081. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Journal of Women’s Health, published monthly, is a core multidisciplinary journal dedicated to the diseases and conditions that hold greater risk for or are more prevalent among women, as well as diseases that present differently in women. Led by Editor-in-Chief Susan G. Kornstein, MD, Executive Director of the Virginia Commonwealth University Institute for Women’s Health, Richmond, VA, and President of the Academy of Women’s Health, the Journal covers the latest advances and clinical applications of new diagnostic procedures and therapeutic protocols for the prevention and management of women’s healthcare issues. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Journal of Women’s Health website. Journal of Women’s Health is the official journal of the Academy of Women’s Health and the Society for Women’s Health Research.

Academy of Women’s Health is an interdisciplinary, international association of physicians, nurses, and other health professionals who work across the broad field of women’s health, providing its members with up-to-date advances and options in clinical care that will enable the best outcomes for their women patients. The Academy’s focus includes the dissemination of translational research and evidence-based practices for disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of women across the lifespan.

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including LGBT Health, Transgender Health, Population Health Management, and Breastfeeding Medicine. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.