Celebrities shed light on cancer screening
February 28, 2011 08:19 PM EST | Cardiology | Email to Friend
When celebrities talk about cancer screening, the power can send Americans to their doctors. According to a nationwide, government-funded survey, more than half of adults recalled celebrity endorsements for cancer screening, and more than a fourth said the pitch made them more likely to get tested.
The survey, by scientists at Dartmouth Medical School, marks the first attempt to assess the impact of those high-profile endorsements.
The early survey of American adults conducted from December 2001 through July 2002 found that 73 percent of women aged 40 and older reported they'd seen or heard celebrities talk about mammograms to screen for breast cancer. Of those women, 25 percent said the celebrity endorsement made them more likely to have a screening mammogram.
