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Background: Melanoma can be curable if detected early. One component of detecting melanoma is an awareness of the important features of the disease. It is currently not clear which features the community view as indicative of melanoma.Objective To investigate which features of the skin members of an urban community believe may indicate skin cancer.Methods: A total of 925 adults (71 per cent response rate) in Brisbane, Australia returned a completed postal questionnaire. Respondents were asked questions about their perceptions of features of skin lesions and other issues relating to skin self-examination (SSE) practices.Results: The greatest proportion of respondents thought that change in the lesion, sensory features and whether a lesion was different to usual moles were most likely to indicate skin cancer. Fewer respondents thought that static features or new moles were indicative of skin cancer. The lowest proportion of respondents thought that the presence of hair was likely to indicate skin cancer.Conclusion: Although change in a lesion is an important feature when looking for early melanoma, current recommendations of looking for change may need to be revised if low levels of skin self-examination continue in the community. Encouraging people to be more familiar with their skin, rather than looking for specific skin features, may improve people's ability to recognise change when it occurs, and recognise which lesions can be considered normal for their skin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the impact of a behaviorally based intervention designed to increase the number of hospitals that routinely provide effective smoking cessation programs for pregnant women. In Queensland, Australia, 70 publicly funded hospitals were matched on numbers of births and maternal socioeconomic status and randomly allocated to an awareness-only intervention group or a behaviorally based intervention group. Success was defined as the routine offer of an evidence-based smoking cessation program to at least 80%of the pregnant clients who smoke. At 1 month, 65%of the behaviorally based intervention hospitals agreed to provide materials about smoking cessation programs for their antenatal patients, compared with 3% of the awareness-only hospitals. After 1 year, 43% of the intervention hospitals still provided the material, compared with 9%of the awareness-only hospitals. These findings show that a brief intervention to hospitals can encourage antenatal staff to provide smoking cessation materials to pregnant women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few educational campaigns have focused on bowel cancer, though studies have indicated that members of the community need and want current information about relevant issues. In order to facilitate research in this area, reliable and valid measures of community attitudes are needed. Content validity of a survey instrument was obtained through use of a Delphi process with Directors of Education from the Australia Cancer Council and focus group discussions with informed members of the public. The subsequent survey of community perceptions about colorectal cancer included a broad range of content areas related to the risk of bowel cancer, preventing and coping with bowel cancer and beliefs about susceptibility and severity. The construct validity of these content areas was investigated by use of a factor analysis and confirmation of an association with related predictor variables. Two measures related to personal influence and anticipated coping responses showed favourable psychometric properties, including moderate to high levels of internal consistency and test-retest reliability. A test of the concurrent validity of these measures requires further development of instruments related to colorectal cancer or adaptation of measures from other areas of health research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate a family practice intervention to encourage patients to request a skin examination during their consultation. Methods: Family physicians in Queensland, Australia, were randomized to intervention or control groups. In the intervention group, materials were provided by the office receptionist and supported by the family physician. Results: The rate of fullbody skin examination was 99.3/1000 consultations in interventiongroup practices compared to 22.4/1000 in control-group practices (p<0.05). Conclusion: This trial indicates that a program focussing on practice reception staff, as well as family physicians, can encourage the early detection of skin cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The efficacy of a school-based intervention was evaluated using a randomized controlled trial in Australia. In consecutive grades (8, 9, and 10), students in the intervention group received components of a program that addressed issues related to the need to protect yourself from the sun, behavioral strategies related to using sun-protective measures, personal and social images of having a tan, the use of sun-safe clothing, and how to change their schools through forms of structural change. Pre- and postintervention measures among junior high school students showed greatest improvement in the intervention group's knowledge scores and minimal changes in sun protection behavior from Grade 8 to Grade 9, which were not maintained through Grade 10. Results of the study highlight some limitations of school-based interventions for changing sun protection behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bowel cancer is the third most common cancer in Australia. The Australian Cancer Soeiety has set a national goal 'to exploit prevention opportunities and to increase early detection.' To address this goal, information about community perceptions is required. Through the use of a Delphi process, a questionnaire was developed to investigate community knowledge, attitudes and beliefs regarding primary prevention and early detection activities. This paper describes the results of a postal survey of a random sample of 855 Queensland adults selected from electoral rolls. Results indicate that there is a high level of uncertainty about bowel cancer and a belief that many behaviours are related to bowel cancer. While 74 per cent believed that tests could detect bowel cancer, only 52 per cent were confident that a doctor could accurately diagnose it. Only 35 per cent agreed that the public should be screened for bowel cancer and only 10 per cent would get a check-up. Perhaps reflecting the degree of uncertainty among health professionals ahout bowel cancer, there appears to he a high level of misinformation and confusion in the community. The need for an educational programme to address these issues is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]