J Menopausal Med.  2018 Dec;24(3):188-195. 10.6118/jmm.2018.24.3.188.

The Roles of Menopausal-specific Quality of Life on Breast Cancer Screening Beliefs in Menopausal and Postmenopausal Women

• Cheng WL

• KMID: 2455893
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.6118/jmm.2018.24.3.188

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
This study investigated the association between menopausal-specific quality of life (MENQOL) and breast cancer screening beliefs among Hong Kong Chinese menopausal and postmenopausal women.
METHODS
A cross-sectional study was employed to collect data. The questionnaire was distributed to a convenience sample of 218 women aged above 45. The outcome variables were breast cancer screening beliefs and breast examination. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to test the effect of 4 domains in MENQOL (vasomotor, psycho-social, physical, and sexual symptom) and the health behaviors on the 2 outcome variables.
RESULTS
This study found that the overall MENQOL scores (in particular psycho-social, and physical aspects) were significantly associated with positive attitudes toward health check-ups and better knowledge and perceptions in breast cancer. Regular exercise was also significantly related to breast examination.
CONCLUSIONS
MENQOL (especially psycho-social and physical domain) and regular exercise are important factors associated with breast cancer screening beliefs. The results of this study illuminate health care professionals to develop primary health care strategies to improve the quality of life of mid-life women.

Keyword

Breast neoplasms; Mammography; Menopause; Postmenopause; Quality of life

MeSH Terms

Asian Continental Ancestry Group
Breast Neoplasms*
Breast*
Cross-Sectional Studies
Delivery of Health Care
Female
Health Behavior
Hong Kong
Humans
Mammography
Mass Screening*
Menopause
Postmenopause
Primary Health Care
Quality of Life*

Reference

1. World Health Organization. World health day 2012: Ageing and health. Geneva, CH: World Health Organization;2012. Cited by 2017 Jul 5. Available from: http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/70840/1/WHO_DCO_WHD_2012.1_eng.pdf.

2. Poomalar GK, Arounassalame B. The quality of life during and after menopause among rural women. J Clin Diagn Res. 2013; 7:135–139.

3. Caglayan EK, Caglayan K, Alkis I, Arslan E, Okur A, Banli O, et al. Factors associated with mammographic density in postmenopausal women. J Menopausal Med. 2015; 21:82–88.

4. Yi SS, Hwang E, Baek HK, Kim TH, Lee HH, Jun HS, et al. Application of bioactive natural materials-based products on five women's diseases. J Menopausal Med. 2015; 21:121–125.

5. Hwang SY, Kim TH, Lee HH. Neutral sphingomyelinase and breast cancer research. J Menopausal Med. 2015; 21:24–27.

6. Ferlay J, Shin HR, Bray F, Forman D, Mathers C, Parkin DM. Estimates of worldwide burden of cancer in 2008: GLOBOCAN 2008. Int J Cancer. 2010; 127:2893–2917.

7. Wong IO, Schooling CM, Cowling BJ, Leung GM. Breast cancer incidence and mortality in a transitioning Chinese population: current and future trends. Br J Cancer. 2015; 112:167–170.

8. International Agency for Research on Cancer. IARC handbooks on cancer prevention, Volume 7: Breast screening. Lyon, FR: IARC Press;2002.

9. Njor S, Nyström L, Moss S, Paci E, Broeders M, Segnan N, et al. Breast cancer mortality in mammographic screening in Europe: a review of incidence-based mortality studies. J Med Screen. 2012; 19:Suppl 1. 33–41.

10. Broeders M, Moss S, Nyström L, Njor S, Jonsson H, Paap E, et al. The impact of mammographic screening on breast cancer mortality in Europe: a review of observational studies. J Med Screen. 2012; 19:Suppl 1. 14–25.

11. Otto SJ, Fracheboud J, Verbeek AL, Boer R, Reijerink-Verheij JC, Otten JD, et al. Mammography screening and risk of breast cancer death: a population-based case-control study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2012; 21:66–73.

12. Kwok C, Fong DY. Breast cancer screening practices among Hong Kong Chinese women. Cancer Nurs. 2014; 37:59–65.

13. Parsa P, Kandiah M, Mohd Nasir MT, Hejar AR, Nor Afiah MZ. Reliability and validity of Champion's Health Belief Model Scale for breast cancer screening among Malaysian women. Singapore Med J. 2008; 49:897–903.

14. Wang WL, Hsu SD, Wang JH, Huang LC, Hsu WL. Survey of breast cancer mammography screening behaviors in Eastern Taiwan based on a health belief model. Kaohsiung J Med Sci. 2014; 30:422–427.

15. McCracken M, Olsen M, Chen MS Jr, Jemal A, Thun M, Cokkinides V, et al. Cancer incidence, mortality, and associated risk factors among Asian Americans of Chinese, Filipino, Vietnamese, Korean, and Japanese ethnicities. CA Cancer J Clin. 2007; 57:190–205.

16. Ahmed K, Jahan P, Nadia I, Ahmed F, Abdullah Al E. Assessment of menopausal symptoms among early and late menopausal midlife Bangladeshi women and their impact on the quality of life. J Menopausal Med. 2016; 22:39–46.

17. Ayers B, Hunter MS. Health-related quality of life of women with menopausal hot flushes and night sweats. Climacteric. 2013; 16:235–239.

18. Lock M, Nguyen VK. An anthropology of biomedicine. Oxford, UK: Wiley-Blackwell;2010.

19. Parsa P, Tabesh RA, Soltani F, Karami M. Effect of group counseling on quality of life among postmenopausal women in Hamadan, Iran. J Menopausal Med. 2017; 23:49–55.

20. Mirhaghjou SN, Niknami M, Moridi M, Pakseresht S, Kazemnejad E. Quality of life and its determinants in post-menopausal women: a population-based study. Appl Nurs Res. 2016; 30:252–256.

21. Masood A, Rashid S, Musarrat R, Mazahir S. Depression, anxiety, psychological distress and quality of life of women in menopausal phase. Pak J Womens Stud. 2016; 23:77–89.

22. Shyu YK, Pan CH, Liu WM, Hsueh JY, Hsu CS, Tsai PS. Health-related quality of life and healthcare resource utilization in Taiwanese women with menopausal symptoms: a nation-wide survey. J Nurs Res. 2012; 20:208–218.

23. Krakau I. Perception of health and use of health care services in a Swedish primary care district. A ten year's perspective. Scand J Prim Health Care. 1991; 9:103–108.

24. Fleishman JA, Zuvekas SH. Global self-rated mental health: associations with other mental health measures and with role functioning. Med Care. 2007; 45:602–609.

25. Gandhi PK, Gentry WM, Kibert JL 2nd, Lee EY, Jordan W, Bottorff MB, et al. The relationship between four health-related quality-of-life indicators and use of mammography and Pap test screening in US women. Qual Life Res. 2015; 24:2113–2128.

26. Blackwell DL, Martinez ME, Gentleman JF. Women's compliance with public health guidelines for mammograms and pap tests in Canada and the United States: an analysis of data from the Joint Canada/United States Survey Of Health. Womens Health Issues. 2008; 18:85–99.

27. Deshpande AD, McQueen A, Coups EJ. Different effects of multiple health status indicators on breast and colorectal cancer screening in a nationally representative US sample. Cancer Epidemiol. 2012; 36:270–275.

28. Courtney-Long E, Armour B, Frammartino B, Miller J. Factors associated with self-reported mammography use for women with and women without a disability. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2011; 20:1279–1286.

29. Census and Statistics Department. Census results. Wan Chai, HK: The Government of the Hong Kong Special Adminstrative Region;2011. Cited by 2017 Aug 10. Available from: https://www.census2011.gov.hk/en/census-result.html.

30. Fong DY, Kwok C, White K. Psychometric properties of the Chinese Breast Cancer Screening Beliefs questionnaire. Eur J Oncol Nurs. 2012; 16:505–511.

31. Hilditch JR, Lewis J, Peter A, van Maris B, Ross A, Franssen E, et al. A menopause-specific quality of life questionnaire: development and psychometric properties. Maturitas. 1996; 24:161–175.

32. Williams RE, Levine KB, Kalilani L, Lewis J, Clark RV. Menopause-specific questionnaire assessment in US population-based study shows negative impact on health-related quality of life. Maturitas. 2009; 62:153–159.

33. Fallahzadeh H. Quality of life after the menopause in Iran: a population study. Qual Life Res. 2010; 19:813–819.

34. Kruger JS, Sizuki R. Health literacy, self rated health, and health screening behaviors of older adults. Health Educ Monogr Ser. 2016; 33:6–10.

35. Li S, Ho SC, Sham A. Relationship between menopause status, attitude toward menopause, and quality of life in Chinese midlife women in Hong Kong. Menopause. 2016; 23:67–73.

36. Pickard AS, Jalundhwala YJ, Bewsher H, Sharp LK, Walton SM, Schumock GT, et al. Lifestyle-related attitudes: do they explain self-rated health and life-satisfaction? Qual Life Res. 2018; 27:1227–1235.

37. Lin SJ. Factors influencing the uptake of screening services for breast and cervical cancer in Taiwan. J R Soc Promot Health. 2008; 128:327–334.

38. Park MJ, Park EC, Choi KS, Jun JK, Lee HY. Sociodemographic gradients in breast and cervical cancer screening in Korea: the Korean National Cancer Screening Survey (KNCSS) 2005–2009. BMC Cancer. 2011; 11:257.

39. Akinyemiju TF. Socio-economic and health access determinants of breast and cervical cancer screening in low-income countries: analysis of the World Health Survey. PLoS One. 2012; 7:e48834.

40. Ntoumanis N, Stenling A, Thogersen-Ntoumani C, Vlachopoulos S, Lindwall M, Gucciardi DF, et al. Longitudinal associations between exercise identity and exercise motivation: A multilevel growth curve model approach. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2018; 28:746–753.

41. Dalleck LC, Borresen EC, Wallenta JT, Zahler KL, Boyd EK. A moderate-intensity exercise program fulfilling the American College of Sports Medicine net energy expenditure recommendation improves health outcomes in premenopausal women. J Strength Cond Res. 2008; 22:256–262.

42. Chung C, Lee S, Hwang S, Park E. Systematic review of exercise effects on health outcomes in women with breast cancer. Asian Nurs Res (Korean Soc Nurs Sci). 2013; 7:149–159.