Barrier | % sample (n) |
---|---|
Gynaecological cancer awareness | 43.0 (267) |
Embarrassment | 32.0 (199) |
How cancer symptoms present | 20.0 (124) |
Fear/anxiety/stigma of cancer | 18.7 (116) |
Reluctance to engage with health professional/health not prioritised | 12.7 (79) |
Access to health care | 11.4 (71) |
Socioeconomic factors (for example, education/culture) | 5.2 (32) |
Reluctance to have an examination | 4.7 (29) |
Denial | 3.7 (23) |
False reassurance from a clear smear result | 1.9 (12) |
Perceive self to be low risk | 1.1 (7) |
Wait and see approach to symptoms | 0.8 (5) |
Fatalism | 0.5 (3) |
Acceptance of pain | 0.3 (2) |
Participants who did not offer an answer | 9.8 (61) |
Many participants cited more than one barrier so percentages do not add up to 100.