According to a recent report by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the number of Americans being screened for breast, colon and cervical cancers is below the targets set by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF). Healthy People 2020 sets national objectives for use of the recommended cancer screening tests and identifies the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) as the means to measure progress. Data from the 2010 NHIS were analyzed to assess use of the recommended tests by age, race, ethnicity, education, length of U.S. residence, and source and financing of health care to identify groups not receiving the full benefits of screening and to target specific interventions to increase screening rates.

In 2010, 72.4 percent of women were being screened for breast cancer (below the 81.1 percent target), cervical cancer screening was 83.0 percent (below the target of 93.0 percent) and colorectal cancer screening was 58.6 percent (below the target of 70.5 percent).

The report indicates that screening rates for all three cancer screening tests were significantly lower among Asians than among whites and blacks. Hispanics were less likely to be screened for cervical and colorectal cancer. Higher screening rates were positively associated with education, availability and use of health care, and length of U.S. residence.

Recommendations made in the report include increased efforts to improve screening rates in all population groups (including targeting populations with particularly low levels of cancer screening) to increase population screening levels to meet Healthy People 2020 targets and reduce cancer morbidity and mortality.