Important Facts for Self-Reported Breast Cancer Screening Among Women
Definition
Estimated percentage of New Jersey women aged 50 to 74 years who reported having a mammogram in the last two years.Numerator
The number of women 50 to 74 years or older who reported having a mammogram in the last two years.Denominator
The total number of female survey respondents aged 50 to 74 excluding those who responded "don't know" or "refused" to the numerator question.Data Interpretation Issues
Data from the New Jersey Risk Factor Survey are intended to represent non-institutionalized adults in households with telephones. Data are collected using a random sample of all possible telephone numbers. Prior to analysis, data are weighted to represent the population distribution of adults by age, sex, and "race"/ethnicity. As with all surveys, however, some residual bias may result from nonresponse (e.g., refusal to participate in the survey or to answer specific questions) and measurement error (e.g., social desirability or recall). Attempts are made to minimize such error by use of a strict calling protocol (up to 15 calls are made to reach each household), good questionnaire design, standardization of interviewer behavior, interviewer training, and frequent, on-site interviewer monitoring and supervision. Starting in 2011, BRFSS protocol requires that the NJBRFS incorporate a fixed quota of interviews from cell phone respondents along with a new weighting methodology called iterative proportional fitting or "raking". The new weighting methodology incorporates additional demographic information (such as education, race, and marital status) in the weighting process. These methodological changes were implemented to account for the underrepresentation of certain demographic groups in the land line sample (which resulted in part from the increasing number of U.S. households without land line phones). Comparisons between 2011 and prior years should therefore be made with caution. (More details about these changes can be found at [http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6122a3.htm].)Why Is This Important?
About one in eight women in the United States will develop breast cancer during their lifetime and this risk increases with age. A mammogram is an X-ray picture of the breast and is the most accurate tool for detecting breast cancer. Health care providers use a mammogram to look for early signs of breast cancer.Healthy People Objective: Increase the proportion of women who receive a breast cancer screening based on the most recent guidelines
U.S. Target: 81.1 percentState Target: 87.5 percent