Objective: To investigate the role of sociodemographic factors in predicting mammography uptake in an outreach screening program.
Methods: Linkage of data from a regional population-based mammography program with four Swedish nationwide registers: the Population and Housing Census of 1990, the Fertility Register, the Cancer Register, and the Cause of Death Register. We computed odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for non-attendance by sociodemographic factors. Non-attendance was defined as failure to attend in response to the two most recent invitations.
Results: Multivariate analyses among 4198 non-attenders and 38,972 attenders revealed that both childless and high-parity women were more likely to be non-attenders (OR = 1.8, 95% CI: 1.6-2.0 and OR = 2.2, 95% CI: 1.8-2.7, respectively). Women living without a partner were less likely to attend (OR = 1.7, 95% CI: 1.5-1.9), as were non-employed women (OR = 2.1, 95% CI: 1.9-2.3). Those renting an apartment were more likely to be non-attenders compared with home-owners (OR = 1.8, 95% CI: 1.6-2.0), and immigrants from non-Nordic countries were more than twice as likely to be non-attenders compared with Swedish-born women (OR = 2.4, 95% CI: 2.0-2.8).
Conclusions: There are identifiable subgroups in which mammography utilization can be increased. Special attention should be paid to women who have never attended, childless women, and non-Nordic immigrants.