Abstract
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. Key words: Breast cancer, secondary school, teachers, breast screening and practices.
Highlights
Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer death among women in 140 of 184 countries worldwide and the most frequently diagnosed cancer among women which represents one in four of all cancers in women (GLOBOCAN 2012)
Breast cancer was second to cancer of the cervix in the NorthWestern geopolitical zone of Nigeria while at University College Hospital (UCH) in Ibadan which is situated in the South-Western geopolitical zone of Nigeria; breast cancer was the leading malignancy among women (Ogunbiyi et al, 2010)
Most of the respondents (93.2%) in this survey were aware of breast cancer and 71.3% has someone who had discussed the harmful effects of breast cancer with them, this result is contrary to the study conducted in other region of Nigeria where 58.2% of the respondents were aware of breast cancer as a disease entity (Omotara et al, 2012)
Summary
Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer death among women in 140 of 184 countries worldwide and the most frequently diagnosed cancer among women which represents one in four of all cancers in women (GLOBOCAN 2012). There is variation of breast cancer incidence worldwide in which Africa is not excluded. In sub-Saharan Africa the incidence of breast cancer was 15% compare with 27% in North African countries (Algeria and Egypt) (Parkin et al, 2003). In the North-central geopolitical zone in Nigeria, breast cancer constituted 22.41% of new cancer cases registered in 5 years and accounted for 35.41% of all cancers in women (Afolayan et al, 2012). Breast cancer was second to cancer of the cervix in the NorthWestern geopolitical zone of Nigeria while at University College Hospital (UCH) in Ibadan which is situated in the South-Western geopolitical zone of Nigeria; breast cancer was the leading malignancy among women (Ogunbiyi et al, 2010)
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