Breast cancer screening practices and awareness in women admitted to a tertiary care hospital of Lahore, Pakistan (original) (raw)

Awareness, knowledge and attitude towards breast cancer, breast screening and early detection techniques among women in Pakistan

JPMA. The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, 2018

To document the knowledge and attitudes of women towards breast cancer, breast screening and early detection techniques. This cross-sectional survey was conducted from December 2015 to May 2016 in Karachi and Islamabad, Pakistan, and comprised women aged above 18 years. The survey used breast cancer inventory as a research instrument after piloting and validation. SPSS 20 was used for data analysis. Of the 1,304 respondents, 948(72.7%) were single, 1,082(83%) belonged to the 18-30 age group, 800(61.3%) had Urdu-speaking ethnicity and 794(60.9%) were educated. The prevalence of breast cancer in family was 226(17.33%). Besides, 446(34.2%) had low knowledge regarding the subject, 646(49.5%) appeared welcoming to the idea of breast screening, 1,008(77.3%) indicated their discomfort in discussing the topic, whereas 1,080(82.8%)preferred a female physician. There was a dearth of knowledge regarding breast cancer among the participants..

To Determine The Level Of Knowledge Regarding Breast Cancer And To Increase Awareness About Breast Cancer Screening Practices Among A Group Of Women In A Tertiary Care Hospital In Mumbai, India

The Internet Journal of Public Health

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is responsible for 10.4% of the global burden of cancers in women and half of this occurs in developing countries. In the sphere of cancer control, much would be achieved if breast cancer were to be detected early. Since a large proportion of patients in India present with advanced disease, any down-staging due to early detection will considerably reduce treatment cost as well as morbidity even if mortality is unaffected. This can be achieved by breast health awareness and adherence to screening practices. OBJECTIVE: The aims of this cross-sectional study were to determine the level of knowledge regarding breast cancer and to measure breast self-examination (BSE) performance in a group of 80 women aged 40 years and above. Additionally we also intended to demonstrate the correct method of BSE performance to each woman included in our study individually and privately. METHODS: This was a cross sectional study conducted over a period of two months commencing on August 1 st 2009 and ending on 30 th September 2009. 80 women were interviewed by means of a structured questionnaire (after obtaining written informed consent) in the surgical outpatient department of the K.J.Somaiya Medical College, Sion, Mumbai. The questionnaire consisted of socio-demographic variables, breast cancer risk factors and protective factors and knowledge and practice of BSE. Further, attitude towards BSE was also evaluated. The data were analyzed by descriptive studies, chi square test and analysis of variance in order to find out the P value. The interview was followed by an interactive session where each woman was individually and privately educated on breast self-examination by the investigators themselves in the presence of a nurse. RESULTS: Breast cancer awareness was found to be 52% in this group of women even though 95% women claimed to have heard of the disease. Only 12% of all women had received information about breast cancer from health professionals while a majority (60%) stated their source of information to be family and friends. Level of breast cancer knowledge was significantly associated with age (younger women more aware than older), income (women belonging to higher income group found to be more aware than those who were economically deprived), literacy (graduates and post graduates more knowledgeable), parity (women bearing lesser number of children being more aware), occupation (teachers and businesswomen being the most aware versus farmers who were the least aware). 38% women had never heard of BSE and among those that had heard of it, 15% were regular while 23% were irregular performers. Thus performance of BSE was found to be inadequate in this group. Not knowing the correct method was the most frequently reported reason for non performance.

Awareness of Mammographic Screening Amongst Females Visiting Breast Clinic at a Tertiary Care Hospital of Karachi

Journal of Bahria University Medical and Dental College, 2020

Objective: To assess the awareness of mammographic screening among women visiting the breast clinic at a tertiary care facility in Karachi. Study Design and Setting: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Centre Karachi over one month period from 1-10-2019 to 31-10-2019. Methodology: After receiving ethical approval, relevant information from patients coming to the breast clinic over the study period, regarding age, level of education, family history, diagnosis and awareness regarding mammographic screening was recorded on specially designed proformas and was statistically analyzed on SPSS 23. P value = to 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: Out of the 100 participants included in the study 68 patients had malignant lesions, 18 had a benign diagnosis while 14 patients were undiagnosed. Only 42 had at least some knowledge of mammographic screening of breast cancers and only 15 patients actually had a screening mammogram perform...

Awareness and Knowledge of Breast Cancer Risk Factors, Symptoms and Screening Among Females in a Hospital in North India

Journal of Evolution of Medical and Dental Sciences

BACKGROUND Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in the world and by far the most frequent cancer among women with an estimated 1.67 million new cancer cases diagnosed in 2012. Breast cancer ranks as the fifth cause of death from cancer overall (522,000 deaths) and while it is the most frequent cause of cancer death in women in less developed regions (324,000 deaths), it is now the second cause of cancer death in more developed regions after lung cancer. AIM To assess the awareness and knowledge about various risk factors, symptoms and screening methods of breast cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 80 adult females. Data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire, which included questions on socio-demographic data, knowledge of various risk factors, symptoms and screening of breast cancer. RESULTS The mean age of participants was 39.25 years with 42.5% aged 31 to 40 years. Majority 60% participants had a poor knowledge about various risk factors of breast cancer. No participant could correctly identify all the seven symptoms mentioned in the questionnaire. Maximum of five symptoms of breast cancer were identified by only 17.5%. Majority 60% participants had not heard about Breast Self-Examination (BSE), only 5% participants had heard about BSE and were regular performers. None of the participants had clinical breast examination in the past year and only 7.5% participants had heard of mammography. CONCLUSION The present study points to the insufficient knowledge of female participants about various risk factors and symptoms of breast cancer. Knowledge about Breast Self-Examination, clinical breast examination and mammography was also not satisfactory.

The knowledge regarding Breast Cancer, its risk factors, and screening practices among women from Islamabad, Pakistan

Journal of Rawalpindi Medical College (JRMC), 2021

Introduction: Breast Cancer is the rising Public health problem of the world. Pakistan is bearing a high disease burden not only in Asian countries but in the whole world. Pakistan ranks highest in Breast cancer and accounts for almost 34.6%of female cancers. The incidence of the disease in Asian countries is quite different from that in Western countries regarding age i.e. (40-50 years.) while (60-70 years) in Western countries. This study was based on assessing the knowledge regarding breast cancer, risk factors, and screening practices to determine the barriers in the path of the community to seek medical care. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was done between October to December 2019 on 310 females participants of ages from 25 to 70 years, residents of Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, and knowledge was assessed by applying a self-responding questionnaire. Results: Using SPSS version 23 and chi-square tests, the results showed that 87.7% of participants knew about the prevalence of Breast Cancer. Whereas, 90.3% of the females with the disease are not aware of their illness and show a strong association (p-value is less than 0.05) between knowledge regarding breast cancer and screening tests. Conclusion: The study concluded that 90% of socio-cultural barriers are in the path of access to medical facilities and 90% of participants believed that the non-availability of female doctors in health facilities is a big barrier to access to health. Access to medical facilities should be made easy by promoting health education and removing the fear of results, making small health facility units.

Knowledge, attitude and practices amongst the Pakistani females towards breast cancer screening programme

JPMA. The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, 2015

OBJECTIVE To assess the knowledge, attitude and practices amongst Pakistani females towards breast screening programmes. METHODS The descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from June 2013 to July2014 at Mayo Hospital, Lahore, and comprised attendants and patients who visited out-patients department and/or were treated as in-patients. The questionnaire contained 25 open and close-ended questions regarding knowledge and attitude, along with 7 questions regarding practices. Data was analysed using SPSS 17. RESULTS There were 1184 women with a mean age of 32.7±8.6 years. The mean score was 12.7±4.9. Positive family history of breast cancer was reported by 156(13.2%) women; 420(35.5%) believed advancing age was a risk factor; 1041(87.9%) never had breast self-examination; 1106(93.4%) never had a clinical breast examination; and 1171(98.9%) never had screening mammogram. CONCLUSIONS The knowledge and practices regarding breast cancer screening, breast self-examination and mammogra...

Breast Cancer Knowledge and Screening Practice and Barriers Among Women in Madinah, Saudi Arabia

Journal of Cancer Education, 2016

Breast cancer a major public health challenge is often associated with high morbidity which often times is not unconnected with poor knowledge and screening practices. Teachers who are seen as role model are the key stakeholders in prevention of breast cancer (BC). However their knowledge and screening practices have not been fully explored. Therefore this study was designed to investigate knowledge of breast cancer and screening practices of female Senior Secondary (SS) school teachers in an urban local government area of Ibadan, Nigeria. The study was cross-sectional in design and it involved all the 411 female teachers in SS school. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to assess breast cancer awareness, knowledge of BC; self reported practice of Self Breast Examination (SBE), Clinical Breast Examination (CBE) and Mammography as well as factors influencing screening practices. Knowledge of BC was measured using a 30-point scale categorized into poor 0-14, fair 15-21, and good 22-30 knowledge respectively. Respondents' mean age and years of service were 39.8±8.5 and 12.0±8.5 years respectively. About two-thirds (79.8%) were married, 70.0% had first degrees and 46.0% masters degrees. Majority (93.2%) had heard of BC and the main sources of information were television (66.4%) and radio (42.0%); 76.2% claimed to have heard about SBE, 10.7% knew the appropriate age for commencing SBE. One hundred and eleven (36.2%) had ever practiced SBE and only 27.6% of these examined their breast monthly. Of the 73 and 163 respondents who have heard of mammography and CBE 1.6 and 4.6% had ever gone for either of the screening respectively. The mean knowledge score of BC was 8.8 ± 4.5. About 86.3% had poor knowledge, 13.0% had fair knowledge and 0.7% had good knowledge of BC. Some respondents believed that BC could be cured (42.3%) and 64.5% believed that BC was a disease of young girls. Almost thirty five percent (34.8%) did not practice BC screening because they did not know how it is done. There was no statistically significant difference in the knowledge of BC and the age of respondents. Knowledge and screening practice for BC is low among the respondents. There is a need to organize series of health education programmes aimed at improving knowledge of breast cancer and screening practices.

Breast cancer in Iran: need for greater women awareness of warning signs and effective screening methods

Asia Pacific Family Medicine, 2008

Background: Breast cancer remains an important public health problem. This study aimed to investigate about female knowledge of breast cancer and self-reported practice of breast self-examination in Iran. Methods: This was a population-based survey carried out in Tehran, Iran. Data were collected via a structured questionnaire containing 15 questions on demographic status, history of personal and family breast problems, subjective knowledge about breast cancer covering its symptoms, the screening methods and practice of breast self-examination (BSE). A trained female nurse interviewed each respondent. Analysis included descriptive statistics and the Chi-squared test where necessary. Results: A total of 1402 women were interviewed. The mean age of respondents was 43.4 (SD = 14.4) years; most were married (85%), and without any personal (94%) and family history (90%) of breast problems. It was found that 64% of the respondents were familiar with breast cancer and 61% (n = 851) believed that 'the disease is relatively common among women in Iran'. Most women (44%) perceived a painless mass as a breast cancer symptom. Overall, 61% of the respondents stated that they knew about breast cancer screening programs and most indicated that electronic media (television 34% and radio 14%) were their source of information. Only 17% of women said that 'they were conducting regular breast self-examination'. The main reason for women not doing breast self-examination was due to the fact that they did not know how to do it (64%). The findings indicated that performing breast self-examination is significantly related to: age, marital status, education, knowledge of breast cancer and knowledge about breast cancer screening programs (p < 0.05), but not to personal (P = 0.2) and family (P = 0.7) history of breast problems. Conclusion: This descriptive study provides useful information that could be utilized by both researchers and those involved in public health programmes. The findings indicated that the women awareness of breast cancer warning signs (painless lump, retraction of nipple, and bloody discharge) and effective screening methods i.e. clinical examination, and mammography were very inadequate. Thus, health education programmes to rectify the lack of women awareness is urgently needed. Indeed the focus of primary health care providers should be to raise awareness about breast care among women and to encourage them to report any unusual changes in their breasts to their family or care physicians.

Breast Cancer Knowledge and Screening Practice among Women in Makkah, Saudi Arabia

Journal of contemporary medical sciences, 2022

This study aimed to estimate the level of current knowledge regarding breast cancer in Saudi Arabia. We assessed the knowledge of breast cancer risks, the knowledge regarding the BSE and mammogram in Saudi Arabian females using a survey-based study. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a self-administered survey to assess the knowledge and practice of Saudi women toward Brest cancer examination. Collected data were analyzed using SPSS program. Results: A total number of 499 surveys were collected. The data showed that there was general lack of practice of BSE in the sample only 186 (37%) reported that they practiced regular BSE and only 16 (3%) reported that they went to the clinic for breast examination. Among all participants around 54% had poor overall knowledge of breast cancer 65% had poor knowledge regarding breast cancer risk and 93% had poor knowledge regarding clinical examination. Surprisingly, 56% had good knowledge regarding the clinical picture of breast cancer. Conclusion: This clearly showed that the lack of breast self-examination, mammogram and clinical examination is not a result of total lack of knowledge but due to lack of knowledge regarding risks and examination. This set of data provide a guideline for the focus and planning of future breast cancer awareness campaigns.

Breast Cancer Awareness and Practice of Breast Self-Examination among Female Medical

Breast cancer is the commonest life-threatening cancer in women worldwide. Regular self breast examination is a novel method for early detection of this cancer which in tern may improve the prospects for long-term survival. We conducted a study to assess the knowledge, attitudes and practice regarding Breast Self-Examination (BSE) in female medical students of the College of Health and Medical Sciences at Haramaya University. A cross sectional study was carried out in 126 female medical students from first year to internship of their medical study. Data were collected using a pre-tested structured self-administered quantitative questionnaire. All the participants had good knowledge about breast cancer and 95% of the participants believed that BSE can be an important tool for early detection of this cancer. About 85% participants agreed that early breast cancer detection improves survival. And 65% of students knew all three breast cancer screening methods viz. BSE, Clinical Breast Examination (CBE) and mammography. When it came to practice it was observed that 77% of the study participants have never done BSE, the main reasons behind this were, I don't have any problem (28.8%), forgetfulness (17.5%), and due to fear of detecting abnormality (16.4%). We conclude that despite of the adequate knowledge of BSE and breast cancer, the actual practice of BSE was very low (23%) among the medical students. We recommended that public awareness on the importance of BSE be intensified using the mass media and other means. Further studies are needed to explore what intervention could be best used to improve the uptake and practice of BSE and other methods for early breast cancer detection.