Abstract
Breast cancer is a major health problem in the world. It is the most common cancer in women and is equally the leading cause of cancer death in women. Though in controversy Breast self-examination (BSE) remains a useful tool in early diagnosis of breast cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practice of BSE amongst women in Yaoundé and Monatele. We carried out a cross sectional study in two communities of Cameron over a period of eight months, targeting females older than 15 years. After obtaining authorization, we randomly interviewed 402 consenting participants, using a pretested questionnaire. Data were entered using CS Pro 7.3 and analysed using SPSS 23. Of a total of 402 participants, 256 (63.7%) in Monatele and 146 (36.3%) in Yaoundé VI, the mean age was 26.55 ± 9.57 years. Exactly 50% (201) had earlier heard of BSE. Health personnel and media represented the main sources of information on BSE. Of the total, 46 (11.4%) knew BSE should be done monthly. Fifty-three percent had poor knowledge and 51.0% had a generally low attitude towards BSE. Out of 402 participants, 65.2% reported not practicing BSE. For those practicing, 71.6% had poor practices. The main reason for not practicing was lack of knowledge. Poor knowledge increased poor practice. In conclusion half of the women had heard about BSE even though the majority had a poor knowledge on BSE and very low overall attitude and practice. Health personnel and media played a key role in passing of information. Increasing the number of health campaigns, multiplying TV shows and health talks about breast self-examination will improve knowledge and hence attitude and practice.
Highlights
Breast cancer (BC) is a major health problem in the world
In conclusion half of the women had heard about Breast self-examination (BSE) even though the majority had a poor knowledge on BSE and very low overall attitude and practice
Monatele is the capital of the Lekie division in the Centre Region located about 70 km from Yaoundé. These communities were chosen because we had a good knowledge of them and we found it easy to interact with the inhabitants
Summary
Breast cancer (BC) is a major health problem in the world. It is the most common cancer in women and is the leading cause of cancer death in women [1]. According to the Global Cancer Observatory (GLOBOCAN) 2012 estimation, BC is the most frequent cancer in women before the cervical cancer with an incidence rate of 31.5% (cited by sando z and co) and 35.1% in 2018 of all cancers in women [7] [8]. This can be explained by the existence of a breast and cervical cancer screening unit at the University Teaching Hospital of Yaoundé since 2009 and the organization of a cervical and breast cancer screening campaign in 2016. It is likely that doctors increased prescription of screening and histological examinations over this time period [9]
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