Effects of cardiovascular disease on compliance with cervical and breast cancer screening recommendations among adult women

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is common among women and is a leading cause of death in the United States. This study assessed the impact of CVD on compliance with the US Preventive Services Task Force guidelines for cervical and breast cancer screening among U.S. adult women. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 17,408 women using data from the National Health Interview Survey 2013. A total of 11,788 respondents (21-65 years old) with complete information on Pap smear and 11,409 women (40+ years old) with complete information on mammography compliance were included. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to assess the impact of CVD on cervical and breast cancer screening practices. Results: Women with CVD were marginally more likely to have had a mammogram in accordance with guidelines (odds ratio 1.17; 95% confidence interval 1.04-1.31) than those without CVD. However, compliance with Pap tests was similar (80.6% vs 82.3%, p>0.05) between the two groups. Myocardial infarction was associated with reduced odds of Pap smear compliance (odds ratio: 0.30; 95% confidence interval 0.18-0.51). Conclusions: Women with prior myocardial infarction should be encouraged to continue receiving regular Pap smears. More research is needed to assess whether observed differences in Pap testing between patients with and without a history of myocardial infarction result from lack of provider recommendation or from patient noncompliance with their recommendations.