Background: Breast cancer accounts for about a third of all the cancers in women, and is the second most common cause of death from cancer in women, only surpassed by lung cancer. Breast cancer has the highest incidence among all cancers. Less than one percent of breast cancers occurs in women under the age of 25 years. After 30 years of age, the incidence of breast cancer increases sharply. The present study aimed to investigate the psychological factors associated with performing mammography as early diagnosis of breast cancer. The factors studied in this study include the approach to disease, and state and trait anxiety. Methods: A prospective descriptive study was conducted on 420 healthy women aged 39 to 50 years old visiting health centers affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences. The instrument of this study was demographic questionnaire and approach to disease questionnaires and Spielberger's state and trait anxiety scale. One month after completing the questionnaires by research subjects and emphasizing the necessity of performing mammography, undertaking mammography or failure to do so was investigated. Data were entered into SPSS 18 software and analyzed by Chi-square and Fisher's exact test. Logistic regression test was used to investigate the effect of significant variables on the chance of performing mammography. Results: Of the 420 participants in the study, 203 participated in mammography. Significant results were obtained regarding the approach to the disease, which confirms the role of hypochondrial beliefs in health behaviors. Participation in mammography was not associated with state and trait anxiety, but the increase in the level of both types of anxiety increased the participation of women. Conclusion: This study suggests that considering psychological issues and individual differences in education and encouraging them to perform mammography is very effective.
