Knowledge and Practice of Breast-Self Examination Among Nurses in Teaching Hospital

Abstract

Background: Breast cancer is the most frequent invasive cancer and the leading cause of death and disability in women. Early screenings and other preventive actions recommended by the health ministry are able to detect breast cancer early. Everyone has a chance of developing breast cancer, including medical professionals who significantly have a positive attitude toward breast self-examination (BSE). However, previous studies showed that knowledge of breast cancer and self-examination is excellent, but practice is generally low. Objective: This study examined the nurses' knowledge and practice of BSE. Methods: A cross-sectional study with convenience sampling was conducted on 122 nurses at the UiTM Clinical Training Centre, Sungai Buloh. A self-administered questionnaire consisting of 41 questions was used to assess the understanding and use of BSE. Findings were analyzed using SPSS version 25 with a chi-square test to determine the association between sociodemographic characteristics and knowledge and practice of BSE. Result: Findings show that 72.1% had adequate knowledge of BSE and 50.8% had moderate practice. Furthermore, age, marital status, and level of study were statistically significant with knowledge and practice of BSE, where the p-value was less than 0.05. Conclusion: Breast self-examination remains an important investigation tool for the early diagnosis of breast cancer, despite other screening methods. The study's findings suggest further exploration of knowledge and practice of BSE by nurses because the knowledge they have will be beneficial to the community in increasing awareness of BSE, thus preventing breast cancer.