Journal of general internal medicine
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Obesity is associated with a higher incidence of colorectal cancer and increased colorectal cancer mortality. Obese women are less likely to undergo breast and cervical cancer screening than nonobese women. It is not known whether obesity is associated with a lower likelihood of colorectal cancer screening. ⋯ Colorectal cancer screening rates among age-eligible persons in the U.S. are disturbingly low. Morbidly obese women, who are at higher risk than others to develop and to die from colorectal cancer, are less likely to be screened. Efforts to increase colorectal cancer screening are needed for all age-eligible groups, but should also include targeted screening of morbidly obese women since they could reap substantial clinical benefits from screening.
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Compared to normal weight women, women with obesity have higher mortality from breast cancer but are less often screened. ⋯ Among white women, those with higher BMI were less likely to undergo breast cancer screening than normal weight women. This relationship was not seen in black women. Our findings were not explained by differences in sociodemographic factors, health care access, illness burden, or health habits. More research is needed to determine the reasons for these disparities so that appropriate efforts can be made to improve screening.