Abstract
Breast cancer is the second most common cancer among women worldwide. It can be detected at an early stage through breast self-examination as it is the main tool for early detection of breast cancer in developing countries because of its simplicity, applicability and cost effectiveness. The objective of the study was to assess the level of Knowledge and Practice of breast self-examination among female college students in Eritrea. Across sectional study was conducted from January to March 2016 in all colleges of Eritrea. The students were divided into two practical strata as health science and non-health science students. From the strata, 380 participants were selected using systematic random sampling based on probability proportionate to size. Self-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data. Data was analyzed using SPSS statistical package version 20.0. This study found that only 30.1% of the students had knowledge about breast self-examination and 11.7% practiced breast self examination (BSE). The three main reasons for not practicing were lack of knowledge on how to perform BSE (34%), the belief that there is no problem with their breast (26.4%) and they didn’t think they should be examined (12.8%). Media (52.1%) and Health worker (18.3%) were the main sources of information on BSE. In conclusion, the knowledge and practice level of BSE was found to be low. Therefore, an intensive health education program should be implemented mainly through mass media and at health care facilities.
Highlights
Breast cancer is a major health concern, as it is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, exceeded only by lung cancer [1]
The majority (67.7%) understood breast self examination (BSE) as an assessment made on breast by an individual herself to check for a swelling while 10.8% saw it as an assessment made on breast by a doctor/nurse to check for swelling. 55.4% of those who have heard about BSE said they knew how to perform BSE
Out of all those who have never practiced BSE, the main reason for not performing was lack of knowledge of the technique indicating the importance of delivery of health education through mass media, at health facilities and other settings could really make a difference by empowering the students and giving them the confidence they need to practice BSE on a regular basis (Table 4)
Summary
Breast cancer is a major health concern, as it is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, exceeded only by lung cancer [1]. More than one million new cases of female breast cancer are diagnosed each year accounting for over 1/3 of the estimated annual 4.7 million cancer diagnosis in females and the second most common tumor after lung cancer in both sexes. It is the most common female cancer in both developed and developing countries with 55% of it occurring in the developing countries. 1.7 million new cases were diagnosed in 2012. This represents about 12% of all new cancer cases and 25% of all cancers in women. Another important point is that up to 50% of breast cancer remains unexplained which makes the problem even more alarming and worrisome because the main cause of the disease could not be ascertained [2]
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