Patients’ attitudes concerning contributing factors and early detection of prostate cancer

Abstract

Abstract Introduction: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second most frequent malignancy (after lung cancer) in men in Iraq, counting 50,106 new cases and causing 3207 deaths in men. The objective of this study was to explore males’ attitudes concerning contributing factors and early detection for prostatic cancer. Materials and Methods: This hospital-based descriptive cross-sectional study used nonprobability purposive sampling technique to select men attending the hospital. The study period extended from September 18, 2023, to January 20, 2024. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used that contained questions organized in two sections. Section A: sociodemographic information with seven items; and Section B: attitude towards prostate cancer screening with twenty items on a 4-point Likert scale. The questionnaire used was adapted from a study conducted on the knowledge, attitudes, and screening surveys regarding prostate cancer. The collected data were coded and entered twice independently on Microsoft Excel then later exported and analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26.0. Results: One hundred and fifty men participated in the study. Participants ranged from 40 to 60 years, with a mean age of 48.48. The majority of men, 153 (90.0%), were married, while 10 (6.7%) were single. Nearly more than third of all participants (37.3%) hold bachelor education, whereas 14% of all men had diploma education. Sixty-six (44.0%) of the participants were employed, 57 (38%) were free work, and 19 (12.7%) were retired. Other sociodemographic characteristics are indicated. Most of the study participants (49%) had strong positive level, while (48%) of them had positive, and only 3% of the total participants had negative attitude about early detection and intention screening of PCa. Conclusions: The study revealed men had strong positive and strong attitude (49% vs. 48%), respectively, toward PCa screening. These findings indicate a need for increased public sensitization campaigns on PCa and its screening tests to improve public understanding about the disease with the aim of early detection. The following core competencies are addressed in this article: Medical knowledge, Patient care, Systems-based practice.