Breast Cancer and Early Screening Among Female Teachers in Misurata: Evaluating Awareness and Practices
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54172/vpqdtr21Keywords:
Breast cancer risk factors, Breast cancer, Breast cancer screening, Misurata, Libya, TeachersAbstract
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the Eastern Mediterranean region, and the first or second leading cause of cancer-related deaths among females. The study aimed to evaluate the level of knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of female teachers in Misurata City, Libya, regarding breast cancer risk factors, signs and symptoms, and screening methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted through a web-based validated questionnaire; 430 responses were received. Data analysis was performed using SPSS v26. 60.5% of participants exhibited a low level of knowledge regarding risk factors, about (73.3%) revealed an excellent level of knowledge concerning breast cancer signs and symptoms, and more than half (53.0%) had a low level of knowledge about breast cancer screening. About 65% of participants exhibited a positive attitude towards breast cancer screening, (65.1%) frequently practice breast cancer screening. Although women in Misurata City have a positive attitude toward breast cancer screening, their poor knowledge hinders them from adopting proper practice techniques. This suggests a need to provide more awareness programs for Libyan women to improve their breast cancer knowledge and practice.
References
Abbas, M. O., & Baig, M. (2023). Knowledge and practice concerning breast cancer risk factors and screening among females in UAE. Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention: APJCP, 24(2), 479.
Akpınar, Y. Y., Baykan, Z., Naçar, M., Gün, İ., & Çetinkaya, F. (2011). Knowledge, attitude about breast cancer and practice of breast cancer screening among female health care professionals: a study from Turkey. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev, 12(11), 3063-3068.
Al-Mousa, D. S., Alakhras, M., Hossain, S. Z., Al-Sa’di, A. G., Al Hasan, M., Al-Hayek, Y., & Brennan, P. C. (2020). Knowledge, attitude and practice around breast cancer and mammography screening among Jordanian women. Breast Cancer: Targets and Therapy, 231-242.
Almanie, R. A., Alshabanah, R. F., Almanie, N. I., Almohayya, T. S., Alahmari, E. M., & Almaher, E. M. (2018). Assessment of Knowledge and Attitude and Practice towards Breast Cancer Screening among Female in Abha City, 2017. The Egyptian Journal of Hospital Medicine, 70(3), 499-502.
Alwan, N., Al Attar, W., Eliessa, R., Madfaic, Z., & Tawfeeq, F. (2012). Knowledge, attitude and practice regarding breast cancer and breast self-examination among a sample of the educated population in Iraq. EMHJ-Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal, 18 (4), 337-345, 2012.
Asmare, K., Birhanu, Y., & Wako, Z. (2022). Knowledge, attitude, practice towards breast self-examination and associated factors among women in Gondar town, Northwest Ethiopia, 2021: a community-based study. BMC Women's Health, 22(1), 174.
Atashi, H. A., Vaghar, M. E., Olya, M., Mirzamohammadi, P., Arani, H. Z., Hadizadeh, M., Rafsanjani, S. M. R. H., & Alizadeh, G. (2020). Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices toward Breast Cancer: among Midwives in a Breast Cancer Educational Seminar in Tehran. Archives of Breast Cancer, 29-36.
CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2024). What is breast cancer screening? . https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/basic_info/screening.htm
Donnelly, T. T., Al Khater, A.-H., Al Kuwari, M. G., Al-Bader, S. B., Al-Meer, N., Abdulmalik, M., Singh, R., Chaudhry, S., & Fung, T. (2015). Do socioeconomic factors influence breast cancer screening practices among Arab women in Qatar? BMJ open, 5(1), e005596.
El-Hamadi, M. R., Gusbi, M., Aisa, M., & Elkout, H. (2019). Breast Cancer awareness, knowledge and beliefs among libyan women. J Sci Res Reports Sciencedomain International, 1-8.
Eldessouki, R., Mabrouk, S., & Eid, S. (2019). Assessment of Knowledge on Breast cancer risk factors and the practice of breast self-examination among college educated female administrative employees in Fayoum University. Fayoum University Medical Journal, 3(1), 29-41.
Elsaid, A. M., & Tunis Meidan, D. O. T. (2023). Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Libyan Females Attending Primary Health Care Centers Regarding Breast Cancer in Benghazi 2017.
Elzahaf, R. A., Mekraz, E. I., Arhaim, S. M., & Almansouri, M. A. (2018). Knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding breast cancer among female students at college of medical technology/Derna. Libyan Journal of medical sciences, 2(4), 142-146.
Fancellu, A., Sanna, V., Sedda, M. L., Delrio, D., Cottu, P., Spanu, A., Giuliani, G., Conti, M., Piras, R., & Crivelli, P. (2019). Benefits of organized mammographic screening programs in women aged 50 to 69 years: a surgical perspective. Clinical Breast Cancer, 19(5), e637-e642.
Fikree, M., Hamadeh, R. R., & Oxon, P. (2011). Breast cancer knowledge among Bahraini women attending primary health care centers. Bahrain Med Bull, 33, 1-8.
Hamed, E., Alemrayat, B., Syed, M. A., Daher-Nashif, S., Rasheed, H. M. A., & Kane, T. (2022). Breast cancer knowledge, attitudes and practices amongst women in Qatar. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(7), 3995.
Harvie, M., Howell, A., & Evans, D. G. (2015). Can diet and lifestyle prevent breast cancer: what is the evidence? American Society of Clinical Oncology Educational Book, 35(1), e66-e73.
IGRC, International Agency for Research on Cancer. (2024). Breast cancer early detection: Training of master trainers in Libya. https://www.iarc.who.int/news-events/breast-cancer-early-detection-training-of-master-trainers-in-libya
Łukasiewicz, S., Czeczelewski, M., Forma, A., Baj, J., Sitarz, R., & Stanisławek, A. (2021). Breast cancer—epidemiology, risk factors, classification, prognostic markers, and current treatment strategies—an updated review. Cancers, 13(17), 4287.
Prusty, R. K., Begum, S., Patil, A., Naik, D., Pimple, S., & Mishra, G. (2020). Knowledge of symptoms and risk factors of breast cancer among women: a community based study in a low socio-economic area of Mumbai, India. BMC Women's Health, 20, 1-12.
Taher, Y. A., Samud, A. M., & Benhusein, G. M. (2016). Knowledge towards breast cancer among Libyan women in Tripoli. Libyan International Medical University Journal, 1(01), 58-68.
Thomas, D. B., Gao, D. L., Ray, R. M., Wang, W. W., Allison, C. J., Chen, F. L., Porter, P., Hu, Y. W., Zhao, G. L., & Pan, L. D. (2002). Randomized trial of breast self-examination in Shanghai: final results. Journal of the national Cancer Institute, 94(19), 1445-1457.
WHO, W. H. O. (2023). WHO launches new roadmap on breast cancer [Internet]. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/news/item/03-02-2023-who-launches-new-roadmap-on-breast-cancer
WHO, W. H. O. (2024). Breast cancer [Internet]. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/breast-cancer
Zarmouh, A., Almalti, A., Alzedam, A., Hamad, M., Elmughrabi, H., Alnajjar, L., Elmugassabi, M., Kashbour, M., & Elsaghayer, W. (2022). Cancer incidence in the middle region of Libya: Data from the cancer epidemiology study in Misurata. Cancer Reports, 5(1), e1448.
Ziuo, F. Y., Twoier, A., Huria, T., & El-Khewisky, F. (2018). Low awareness about breast self-examination and risk factors of breast cancer in Benghazi, Libya. Ibnosina Journal of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, 10(02), 54-59.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Alyaa E. M. Azzain (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Copyright of the articles Published by Almukhtar Journal of Science (MJSc) is retained by the author(s), who grant MJSc a license to publish the article. Authors also grant any third party the right to use the article freely as long as its integrity is maintained and its original authors and cite MJSc as the original publisher. Also, they accept the article remains published by the MJSc website (except in the occasion of a retraction of the article).
