The Impact of Health Literacy and Health Beliefs on The Attitudes Towards Cancer Screening: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Early detection of any type of cancers is crucial for an effective treatment. Cancer screening programs are widely implemented for early detection in many countries. The acceptance of screening programs by young population is important because their attendance to these programs can reduce the burden of cancer in health system in the future. Hence, examining the attitudes towards cancer screening in young population can be useful to enhance the effectiveness of screening programs. This study aims to explain this phenomenon by examining the effects of health literacy level and health beliefs on cancer. The study is quantitative and cross-sectional. The study included 419 people between the ages of 18 and 30. Simple linear regression was used to examine the effects of health literacy and health beliefs on attitudes towards cancer screening. The results show significant relations between health literacy, health beliefs and attitudes towards cancer screening. Health literacy, perceived severity, perceived benefits, and perceived barriers explained 38% of the variance in attitudes towards cancer screening. This study contributes to the existing body of knowledge by providing information about perceptions of young population about cancer screening programs and their predictors.