ASPO Abstracts
Patient-Centered Factors Associated with Chemotherapy Communication in African-American and White Breast Cancer Patients
Category: Culture and Cancer
Conference Year: 2021
Abstract Body:
Purpose: Patient-provider communication has significant implications on cancer care outcomes such
as patient satisfaction, psychosocial health, and treatment adherence, but little is known about the
patient centered factors (needs, values, beliefs, and attitudes) that influence chemotherapy
communication between providers and African-American (AA) and White (W) breast cancer BC)
patients. Methods: We performed descriptive statistics and conducted bivariate analyses between
ratings of chemotherapy communication and the following: 1) care needs, 2) sociocultural values, 3)
cancer and care beliefs, attitudes, and experiences, and 4) patient health and sociodemographic
factors using survey data. Study variables with p < .25 were entered simultaneously into a linear
regression model. Variables that demonstrated high collinearity and did not improve model fit were
removed. Results: The final model (F(7,252)=7.302, p< .001) indicated that valuing authority versus
relating to everyone the same (β=-.211, p=.004), low medical mistrust (β=-.018, p=.033), low
perceived BC severity (β=.037, p=.019), and low perceived risk for chemotherapy (β=.051, p=.007)
were associated with higher ratings of chemotherapy communication after adjusting for covariates.
The R=.411, R2=.169, and the adjusted R2=.146. Aged less than 60 years (β=-.126, p=.089), a
value for learning about life from the wisdom and knowledge of others versus personal experience
(β=.180, p=.089), and having no racial discrimination experiences in healthcare (β=-.138, p=.070)
lost statistical significance after being entered in the model. Conclusions: Patient's values for relating
to others, and their cancer and care beliefs and experiences are significantly related to their
treatment discussions and potentially their care outcomes. Future research should examine causal
paths between these factors and determine best practices for efficiently eliciting such information
during consultations and adjusting care accordingly.
Keywords: patient-provider communication, cancer disparities, patient- centered care