Religious beliefs and mammography intention: findings from a qualitative study of a diverse group of American Muslim women

Abstract

Objective

Studies suggest that American Muslim women underutilize mammography. While religion has a strong influence upon Muslim health behaviors scant research has examined how religion-related beliefs inform Muslim women's intention for mammography. Our study identifies and examines such beliefs.

Methods

Muslim women aged 40 and older sampled from mosques participated in focus groups and individual interviews. Drawing upon the Theory of Planned Behavior, interviews elicited salient behavioral, normative, and control beliefs regarding mammography and the influence of Islam upon screening intention.

Results

Fifty women participated in 6 focus groups and 19 in semi-structured interviews, with near-equal numbers of African American, South Asian, and Arab Muslims. Forty-two percent of participants had not had a mammogram within the past two years. Across differences in race/ethnicity and mammography status women voiced four religion-related salient beliefs that inform mammography intention: (1) the perceived duty to care for one's health, (2) religious practices as methods of disease prevention, (3) fatalistic notions about health, and (4) comfort with gender concordant healthcare.

Conclusions

Religious beliefs influence decisions to pursue mammography across the ethnic/racial diversity of Muslim women. Notions about duty to God and the stewardship of one's body appear to enhance mammography intention. Theocentric notions of cure and illness and varied views regarding personal agency also inform decisional frames that impact mammography intention. Given the salience of religion among our participants, religiously-tailored messages in interventions have the potential to enhance cancer screening.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

from Cancer via ola Kala on Inoreader http://ift.tt/29ODGWt
via IFTTT

Cabazitaxel overcomes cisplatin resistance in germ cell tumour cells

Abstract

Background

Cisplatin-based chemotherapy is highly effective in metastasized germ cell tumours (GCT). However, 10–30 % of patients develop resistance to cisplatin, requiring salvage therapy. We investigated the in vitro activity of paclitaxel and the novel taxane cabazitaxel in cisplatin-sensitive and -resistant GCT cell lines.

Methods

In vitro activity of paclitaxel and cabazitaxel was determined by proliferation assays, and mode of action of cabazitaxel was assessed by western blotting and two screening approaches, i.e. whole proteome analysis and a human apoptosis array.

Results

Activity of paclitaxel and cabazitaxel was not affected by cisplatin resistance, suggesting that there is no cross-resistance between these agents in vitro. Cabazitaxel treatment showed a strong inhibitory effect on colony formation capacity. Cabazitaxel induced classical apoptosis in all cell lines, reflected by cleavage of PARP and caspase 3, without inducing specific changes in the cell cycle distribution. Using the proteomic and human apoptosis array screening approaches, differential regulation of several proteins, including members of the bcl-2 family, was found, giving first insights into the mode of action of cabazitaxel in GCT.

Conclusion

Cabazitaxel shows promising in vitro activity in GCT cells, independent of levels of cisplatin resistance.

from Cancer via ola Kala on Inoreader http://ift.tt/29R9gUI
via IFTTT