Table 2 Summary of relationship between main and cross-cutting themesa
Cross-cutting themes | Main themes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
Beliefs about cancer | Risk reduction in daily life | Participation in screening | |
Ethnic identity | Aware of traditional views Mistrust of health promotion messages | Aware of ‘healthy lifestyle’ messages Activities with children and animals | Belief that community uptake is low Screening outside NHS (e.g. abroad (Roma only) or via private medical services in UK (Showpeople only)) |
Gender roles | Men are stoical about illness Men and women do not discuss private health matters | Women provide meals Women and men’s exercise is highly gendered | Women likely to attend screening Men unlikely to attend |
Fatalism | Traditional cancer fatalism | Doubt whether prevention is possible | Men likely to await symptoms |
Fear of being shamed | Tradition that cancer is taboo | Low health literacy | Exposure of body contravenes privacy (Gypsy/Travellers only) |
Social and economic factors | Low literacy levels Language barriers (Roma only) | Expectation of early morbidity Awareness of risk in work and living conditions | Lack of familiarity with UK screening system (Roma only) |