Embarrassment, Social Stigma May Discourage Obese White Women From Seeking Colon Cancer Screening

Embarrassed of what?

File in the "not my problem, not my fault" bin.

A new study by Johns Hopkins researchers shows that obese white women may be less likely than normal-weight counterparts and African-Americans of any weight or gender to seek potentially lifesaving colon cancer screening tests.

Results of this study follow the same Johns Hopkins group's previous research suggesting that obese white women also are less likely to arrange for mammograms, which screen for breast cancer, and Pap smears, which search for early signs of cervical cancer.

"No group is perfect when it comes to screening, and overall rates of colonoscopy are low, but if you're obese, female and white, our data show you're probably even less likely to be screened," says study leader Nisa M. Maruthur, M.D., M.H.S., an assistant professor in the Division of General Internal Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Maruthur notes that the reluctance to be screened is especially serious in this group because obesity is linked to higher risk for colon cancer and an increased risk of death from the disease.

The consequences are your responsibility and your responsibility solely.