scholarly journals Knowledge, attitude and practice of cervical cancer and its screening (Pap smear) among female students of Orotta College of medicine and health sciences

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 51-61
Author(s):  
Yohannes Mekonen ◽  
Hermon Berhe ◽  
Luam Ghebreab ◽  
Elias Teages

Background: Cervical cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide that affects developing countries and young women in particular. Out of many types of female cancers, cancer of the cervix could be prevented if appropriate medical interventions are taken on time. Pap smear is a means for early detection of premalignant stages and treatment before the disease advances to a late stage. However, its practice remains unsatisfactory in many countries including Eritrea. Objective: The aim of the study was to illustrate knowledge, attitude and level of cervical cancer and Pap smear practice and associated factors among female students of Orotta College of Medicine and Health sciences (OCMHS). Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among female undergraduate students in OCMHS enrolled during the academic year 2018-2019. A total of 252 students participated in the study. Piloted, structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to assess the distribution and to identify associations between independent and outcome variables respectively. Results: Majority of the students, 171 (68.4%), were 18-21 years old and 159 (63.6%) were second and third year students. One hundred thirty six (54.4%) students had inadequate knowledge and one hundred twenty three (49.2%) had negative attitude towards cervical cancer screening. Only two (0.8%) participants had ever been screened with Pap smear test. Logistic regression analysis showed that age, level of education and year of study were significantly associated with knowledge of cervical cancer and its screening methods. Year of study and knowledge levels were significantly associated with attitude towards cervical cancer screening (Pap smear). Conclusions: The study showed that there is a lack of knowledge of cervical cancer, unfavorable attitude towards screening methods and poor utilization of Pap smear. The study emphasized the importance of creating awareness and increasing knowledge of cervical cancer and Pap smear through numerous health education campaigns and mass media. Hence, it will be vital to integrate cervical cancer preventive measures with other reproductive health care services at all, if not at the highest, levels of health care delivery system.

Author(s):  
Khushboo Singh ◽  
Alka Goel ◽  
Manisha Attri

Background: In spite of effective screening methods, cervical cancer continues to be a major public health problem in India. Therefore, the present study was carried out to assess the knowledge of cervical cancer and its screening among women, it also focuses on the reasons for not undergoing regular screening and the effect of counseling for the same.Method: 400 women were randomly enrolled from the women attending/visiting/working at a tertiary hospital. They were asked questions related to cervical cancer. All answers were obtained verbally and recorded in the questionnaire by the same investigator.Results: Out of 400 women, only 103 were aware of cervical cancer as well as its screening, and only 10 of them were undergoing regular screening. Among those who were aware of cervical cancer, majority (95.14%) were health care workers and most of them got this knowledge form their textbooks. After counseling, all except 6 women were willing for regular screening. The reason for refusal for the same was either they believed they were not at risk or they found pelvic examination uncomfortable.Conclusions: The study found that women had poor knowledge about cervical cancer and its screening. Awareness was higher among the women who had received higher education or were healthcare workers. However, cervical cancer screening rate was low even in these women. Government and health care professionals need to actively promote awareness of the risk factors of cervical cancer and encourage women to undergo regular Pap smear as a cervical cancer screening method.


Author(s):  
Chidebe Christian Anikwe ◽  
Philip Chidubem Osuagwu ◽  
Cyril Chijioke Ikeoha ◽  
Okechukwu B Ikechukwu Dimejesi ◽  
Bartholomew Chukwunonye Okorochukwu

Background Cervical cancer is a preventable disease that contributes significantly to the death of women. This study is aimed at determining the level of knowledge and utilization of cervical cancer screening and its determinants among female undergraduates of Ebonyi State University. Methods A structured questionnaire was used for a cross-sectional survey of the study population between January 1 and March 3, 2018. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 20. Data were represented with frequency table, simple percentage, mode, range, Chi square and pie chart. The level of significance is at P-value < 0.05. Results Majority (74.8%) of the respondents were aware of cervical cancer and it could be prevented (70.8%). More than three-fifths (68.30%) were informed via health workers, and 86.8% were aware that post-coital vaginal bleeding is a symptom. Less than half (49.8%) knew that HPV is the primary cause, and only 32.9% were aware of the HPV vaccine. One-quarter of the respondent were aware that early coitarche is a risk factor for cervical cancer. Only 41.8% of the women were aware of Pap smear, 9.2% had undergone screening, and 97.6% were willing to be screened. Marital status was the significant determinant of being screened while class level did not significantly influence uptake of cervical cancer screening. The most common reason (20.6%) for not being screened was lack of awareness of the test. Conclusion Our study population had a good knowledge of cervical cancer, but utilization of cervical cancer screening was poor. Awareness creation through the mass media and provision of affordable screening services can promote the use of cervical cancer screening in the study area.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alem Getaneh ◽  
Birhanemeskel Tegene ◽  
Teshome Belachew

Abstract Background Cervical cancer is a major public health problem. In the world, cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women and it is one of the leading causes of cancer mortality in females. It is the second most common women cancer in Ethiopia with almost 6300 new cases and 4884 deaths annually. Despite the high burden of new cases and deaths, there is a scarcity of data on knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) towards cervical cancer screening among female university students in Ethiopia particularly in the study area. Therefore, the present study was aimed to assess the KAP of undergraduate female students towards cervical cancer screening. Methods An institution based cross-sectional study was conducted in April 2018 at the University of Gondar, College of Medicine and Health Sciences undergraduate female students. Pretested, self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Four hundred and three female students were recruited by a simple random sampling method and the data were entered and analyzed using SPSS version 20 statistical packages. Descriptive data analysis was used to report the results. Results More than half of the respondents (59.3.3%) had good knowledge, whereas nearly 67.7% of the respondents had favorable attitude towards cervical cancer. However, less than 1% of the respondents had been screened for cervical cancer. Conclusion Although undergraduate female students had apparently good knowledge and favorable attitude, their practices on cervical cancer screening were quite low. Therefore, the health sectors and the gender streaming office of the university mobilize students to strengthen the uptake the cervical cancer screening practice.


2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 18-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Obročníková ◽  
Ľudmila Majerníková

AbstractAim. Cervical cancer is the most common genital malignancy and one of the leading causes of death among female population in Slovakia. At present, this location of cancer is preventable disease visible in screening for premalignant lesions if the women use and participate in such screening regularly. We assessed the knowledge on the cervical cancer screening, the attitude towards it and its utilization among women in Slovakia.Material and methods. A cross-sectional study evaluated the knowledge, attitude and practice of cervical cancer prevention and screening among women. The sample was composed of 239 women aged 18-64 years. Data collection was conducted by selfadministered questionnaire in a period from January to April 2015.Results. Respondents exhibited an average knowledge of cervical cancer, about risk factors and early signs, but awareness of cervical cancer screening was satisfactory. Despite the fact that respondents expressed good attitude to cervical cancer screening, their level of practice was low (64% participation in preventative gynaecology check-ups and 43% in Pap smear tests within one year and 44% within three years). In the study we could observe better results in women with higher education when it comes to an illness (p < .001), its prevention (p < .001) and risk behaviour (p < .001).Conclusions. The awareness of cervical cancer among women in Slovakia is limited. In the future there is a need to educate and promote awareness of cervical cancer among women to reduce the burden of morbidity and mortality.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-39
Author(s):  
Dr. N. Thamarai Selvi ◽  
◽  
Dr. Revathi Shree R ◽  
Dr. Prakashiny S. ◽  
◽  
...  

Introduction: Carcinoma Cervix is common all around the globe and ranked third amidst allmalignancies among women. The cervical mucosa undergoes morphologic variation with age andpractising cytopathologists is aware of these difference to make an accurate diagnosis. This studyaimed to detect abnormal cervical epithelial cell patterns in a rural population and compare lesionsor abnormal cell patterns among different age groups. Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional, descriptive study conducted in a tertiary care centre at the Department of Pathology over6 months. 408 women were included in the study. Data were entered in Microsoft Excel andanalyzed in SPSS software. Results: Out of 408 women included in the study, the most commonage group of the presentation was 31 to 40 years (36%), followed by 20 to 30 years (24%). NILM-Inflammatory was the most common finding (50%), followed by NILM (36%). The most commonsymptoms of presentation were Menstrual abnormalities (21%), White discharge and pruritus(18%). Findings in younger women were most commonly NILM-Inflammatory & NILM whereas in thepost-menopausal age group, ASCUS, LSIL & HSIL. Conclusion: All women above 30 years of ageshould undergo routine cervical cancer screening, and should continue screening even in theperimenopausal and postmenopausal age. Most women who visited the gynaecology OPD were notaware of cervical cancer screening. Hence the general population has to be educated about thebenefits of pap smear test through medical camps and awareness programs.


Author(s):  
D. O. Allagoa ◽  
O. J. Agbo ◽  
A. O. Eguvbe ◽  
P. W. Alabrah

Background: Cervical cancer is one of the commonest cancers in women. It is the commonest cause of cancer related death in Africa. It is one of the cancers that have well known screening methods. In developed societies with standard protocol for screening, the morbidity and mortality following the disease have been greatly reduced. There is paucity of knowledge of cervical cancer and its screening methods in Yenagoa. Objectives: To determine the knowledge of cervical cancer and its screening methods in female students of a Tertiary educational institution. Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study that was conducted amongst the female students of Federal University Otuoke. Information about their socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge of cervical cancer and the screening methods was obtained using a questionnaire. Results: A total of four hundred and twenty four (424) female students of the Federal University Otuoke were enrolled for the study. The mean age of the respondents was 21.0±3.4 years. The predominant age group was 15-20 years (50.6%). One hundred and eighty three respondents (57.9%) were aware of cervical cancer and the age groups 21-25 years were most aware of cervical cancer. Age was found to influence awareness of cervical cancer. (x2=12.8; df=3; p<0.05). A total of eighty one respondents 26.9% were aware of Pap smear. Age was found to influence the awareness of Pap smear (x2=12.8; df=3; p<0.05). Conclusion: Our study showed that awareness of cervical cancer and the role of Pap smear in the screening of cervical cancer was low amongst the female students of the Federal University Otuoke. Hence the need to make every effort to increase the awareness of this condition and the screening methods amongst these female undergraduates, who are at the prime of their age and at the greatest risk of developing this condition, especially in our societies that lack well organized screening protocols.


2009 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 318-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luís Felipe Leite Martins ◽  
Joaquim Gonçalves Valente ◽  
Luiz Claudio Santos Thuler

OBJECTIVE:To analyze factors associated with cervical cancer screening failure. METHODS:Population-based cross-sectional study with self-weighted two-stage cluster sampling conducted in the cities of Fortaleza (Northeastern Brazil) and Rio de Janeiro (Southeastern Brazil) in 2002. Subjects were women aged 25-59 years in the last three years prior to the study. Data were analyzed through Poisson regression using a hierarchical model. RESULTS: The proportion of women who did not undergo the Pap smear test in Fortaleza and Rio de Janeiro was 19.1% (95% CI: 16.1;22.1) and 16.5% (95% CI: 14.1;18.9), respectively. Higher prevalence ratios of cervical cancer screening failure in both cities were seen among women with low education and low per capita income, old age, unmarried, who never underwent mammography, clinical breast examination, and blood glucose and cholesterol level testing. Smokers also had lower screening rates compared to non-smoker women and this difference was only statistically significant in Rio de Janeiro. CONCLUSIONS:The study findings point to the need of intervention focusing particularly women in worse socioeconomic conditions and access to healthcare, old-aged and unmarried. Education activities must prioritize screening of asymptomatic women and early diagnosis for symptomatic women and access to adequate diagnostic methods and treatment should be provided.


2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 451-463
Author(s):  
Elisa N. Vhuromu ◽  
Daniel T. Goon ◽  
Maria S. Maputle ◽  
Rachel T. Lebese ◽  
Benedine U. Okafor

Aim:Screening for early detection and treatment of cervical cancer is a cornerstone of prevention. The purpose of this study was to assess the awareness in women about the utilization of cervical cancer screening services in Vhembe District, South Africa.Methods:This cross-sectional study involved a random selection of 500 women aged 20-59 years in Vhembe District, Limpopo Province, South Africa. Data was collectedviaa self-structured questionnaire on the demographic variables, provision, utilization and awareness of cervical cancer screening services.Results:The majority of the participants agreed to have cervical cancer screening services in their clinics (79.2%), and never had a Pap smear (58.6%). Most women would not go for cervical cancer screening, mainly because of a lack of facilities (30.0%), fear of pain (24.4%), and embarrassment (15.2%). Most participants indicated that Pap smear test meant scraping the cervix to detect abnormal cancerous cells (39.2%) and 34.2% did not know a Pap smear. Majority of the participants indicated Pap smears should be done every 10 years (65.8%); Pap smears could detect cervical cancer earlier (66.8%), and had heard about cervical cancer (71.6%). The majority of the participants considered cervical cancer as a serious problem to warrant considerable attention (59.4%); and some perceived cervical cancer as transmittable through multiple sexual partners (22.2%). The majority of the participants were aware of a vaccine against cervical cancer for girls at school (69.0%), and it was indicated that government should use health education to encourage women to attend cervical screening services (51.6%).Conclusion:Despite the free availability of cervical cancer screening services and awareness, the utilization of cervical cancer screening services is low. There is a need to intensify cervical screening health talks and campaigns, and to provide alternative accessible options for screening services for women in rural areas.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document