The Cancer Screening Project for Women is a study about the experiences of legally unmarried women with breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening. During the initial phase of the study, we conducted focus groups to explore factors that influence unmarried women's decisions about cancer screenings. Women were invited to attend one of four group discussions: (1) never married women who either partner with women (WPW) or with both women and men (WPWM), (2) previously married women who now partner either with women (WPW) or with both women and men (WPWM), (3) never married women who partner with men (WPM), and (4) previously married women who partner with men (WPM). Twenty-eight women attended the focus groups, 14 WPW and 14 WPM. Several barriers to screening were consistent across the groups and included lack of acknowledgement and validation in medical settings, administrative barriers, pain, and concerns about body image. WPW specifically discussed fears about discrimination if and when they acknowledge their sexual orientation. WPW also described how women who express their gender androgynously are more likely to avoid health care facilities. Further studies are needed to determine if the themes we identified are consistent among larger samples of unmarried women.

Some women felt that providers should ask about SHIR only if questions relate to an associated health problem (e.g. sexually transmitted infection). When providers do ask questions about SHIR, they should do so in ways that can be answered by all women regardless of partnering status, and follow questions with non-judgmental discussions.

Objectives: We explored self-reported rates of individual on-schedule breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screenings, as well as an aggregate measure of comprehensive screenings, among unmarried women aged 40-75 years. We compared women who partner with women (WPW) or with women and men (WPWM) to women who partner exclusively with men (WPM). We also compared barriers to on-schedule cancer screenings between WPW=WPWM and WPM. Methods: Comparable targeted and respondent-driven sampling methods were used to enroll 213 WPW= WPWM and 417 WPM (n ¼ 630). Logistic regression models were computed to determine if partner gender was associated with each measure of on-schedule screening after controlling for demographic characteristics, health behaviors, and cancer-related experiences. Results: Overall, 74.3% of women reported on-schedule breast screening, 78.3% reported on-schedule cervical screening, 66.5% reported on-schedule colorectal screening, and 56.7% reported being on-schedule for comprehensive screening. Partner gender was not associated with any of the measures of on-schedule screening in multivariable analyses. However, women who reported ever putting off, avoiding, or changing the place of screenings because of sexual orientation were less likely to be on-schedule for comprehensive screening. Women who reported barriers associated with taking time from work and body image concerns were also less likely to be on-schedule for comprehensive screening. Conclusions: Barriers to cancer screening were comparable across types of examinations as well as between WPW=WPWM and WPM. Developing health promotion programs for unmarried women that address concomitant detection and prevention behaviors may improve the efficiency and effectiveness of healthcare delivery and ultimately assist in reducing multiple disease risks.

Background: Little is known about the impact of data collection method on self-reported cancer screening behaviours, particularly among hard-to-reach populations. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of data collection mode on response to indicators of cancer screenings by unmarried middle-aged and older women.