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American Journal of Epidemiology Vol. 133, No. 3: 240-245
Copyright © 1991 by The Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health

research-article

Recall (Report) Bias and Reliability in the Retrospective Assessment of Melanoma Risk

Martin A. Weinstock1,, Graham A. Colditz2, Walter C. Willet2,3,4, Meir J. Stampfer2,3, Bernard Rosner2,5 and Frank E. Speizer2

1Dermatoepidemiology Unit, Departments of Medicine (Dermatology Sections), Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Roger Williams General Hospital, and Brown University, Providence, RI
2Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Womens Hospital and Harvard Medical School Boston, MA
3Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health Boston, MA
4Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health Boston, MA
5Department of Preventive Medicine, Harvard Medical School Boston, MA

Reprint requests to Dr. Martin A. Weinstock, Dermatoepidemiology Unit-111, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 830 Chalkstone Avenue, Providence, RI 02908

In a case-control study nested in the Nurses' Health Study cohort, the authors assessed recall bias in the ascertainment of two risk factors for melanoma: hair color and ability to tart. Participants reported on these risk factors in a 1982 questionnaire and in a subsequent case-control questionnaire or telephone interview. The test-retest reliability among controls was high for both questions (Spearman's r = 0.76). Among women diagnosed with melanoma after the first questionnaire and before the second, there was a substantial shift toward reporting a reduced ability to tan when participants were questioned after the diagnosis of melanoma (p = 0.035). No shift was noted for the hair color question (p = 0.8). The authors conclude that recall bias was observed among female nurses with cutaneous melanoma in the assessment of tanning ability, a major risk factor for melanoma.

bias; cohort studies; epidemiologic methods; melanoma; prospective studies; questionnaires; recall; retrospective studies; skin pigmentation


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