Research Information System
20th World Congress on Controversies in Obstetrics, Gynecology & Infertility (COGI), Paris, France, 2 - 07 December 2014, pp.97-98, (Full Text)
WOMEN'S ATTITUDES TOWARD EARLY DIAGNOSIS OF CERVICAL CANCER
Introduction: Cancer is a major public health problem for both the world and our country because of the burden of the disease, its lethality and the increasing trend in its incidence. Women are at high risk throughout their lives for the structural disorders related to the reproductive system and the formation of tumor diseases. When risk factors are taken into consideration, cervical cancer ranks first among gynecological cancers. Cervical cancer is the second most common type of cancer in women under age 45 worldwide and is the third leading cause of death from cancer after breast and lung cancer. Cervical cancer is the eighth most common form of cancer (4.1/100000) in Turkey. Screening programs have a significant impact on the reduction of the cervical cancer.
Objective: This study is conducted as descriptive and cross-sectional in order to determine the attitudes of women towards early diagnosis of cervical cancer.
Methods: The study population consists of all women between the ages of 20 and 64 applied to the obstetrics and pediatrics outpatient clinic of the hospital for any reason between 14 July and 31 December 2014. Women who participated in the survey are divided into "20-29", "30-39", "40-49", "50 and up" age groups according to Adana female population data of Turkey Statistical Institute in 2012. A total of 616 women were planned to create our sample by selecting 1/1000 stratified sampling for all age groups having a number of 172, 170, 135, 139, respectively. The study sample consists of 599 women because of the inadequacy of data collection form of 17 women out of those stratified and randomly selected 616 women who participated voluntarily in the study. Before the study, the hospital ethics committee approval, necessary permits from the hospital management and written consent of women are taken.
Data were taken by a 35-item questionnaire, which is prepared in accordance with the participants' socio-demographic characteristics, gynecological examination and pap smear status and determines their knowledge about cervical cancer and pap smear test, and a 30-item "Cervical Cancer Early Diagnosis Attitudes Scale", which is developed by Ozmen and consists of perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived barriers, perceived benefits subscales. The highest score obtained from the scale is 150, and the lowest score is 30. Received high scores from the scale show that individual attitudes of early diagnosis of cervical cancer are positive.
The data obtained are evaluated by percentage, arithmetic mean, standard deviation, minimum, maximum, ANOVA and t-test using package program SPSS 15.0 for Windows.
Results: It is obtained that participants' mean age is 37.62 ± 11.733, the distribution range of the ages is from 20 to 64 years, average marriage age is 20:17 ± 4.681, the distribution range of the marriage age is from 11 to 45 years, average number of children is 2.95 ± 1.818, the distribution of the range of the number of children is from 1 to 12 children.
It is determined that of the participants, 57.0% (n = 346) are in the 20-39 age group, 88.1% (n = 528) are currently married, 51.9% (n = 286) of those who are married (including widowed and divorced) made their first marriage at age 19 and under, 76.3% (457) own primary and lower educational attainment, 90.0% (n = 544) does not work, 64.3% (n = 385) husbands own primary and lower educational attainment, 37.4% (n = 224) husbands are workers, 91.0% (n = 545) have health insurance, 76.0% (n = 455) have moderate-income, 82.8% (n = 496) have children, 61.1% (n = 366) have 3 children or lower, 74.8% (n = 448) had gynecological examination, 53.8% (n = 322) of those who had gynecological examination goes to gynecological examination due to illness complaint, 22.7% (n = 136) of those who had not gynecological examination did not go to examination because of lack of an illness complaint, 50.3% (n = 301) have cervical cancer related knowledge, 32.1% (n = 192) obtained this information from health care providers, 1.2% (n = 7) received cervical cancer diagnosis, 6.8% (n = 41) have family member diagnosed with cervical cancer, 56.1% (n = 23) of those who have family member diagnosed with cervical cancer have a second degree relative diagnosed with cervical cancer, 41.7% (n = 250) have knowledge about pap smear tests, 31.6% of the (189) have pap smear test, 54.5% (n = 103) have pap smear test due to doctor recommendation when she went to a doctor for gynecological examination, 90.5% (n = 371) of those who had not pap smear screening had not pap smear test because of lack of an illness complaint.
It is found that total score average of the attitude scale towards early diagnosis of cervical cancer is 109.33 ± 9.345, the distribution range is from 77 to 137; perceived sensitivity subscale average of the scale is 31.96 ± 3.837, perceived severity subscale average of the scale is 31.62 ± 4.709, perceived barriers subscale average of the scale is 24.29 ± 4.160, perceived benefits subscale average of the scale is 21:47 ± 2.522.
The relationship between the situations, having children, having a gynecological examination, having information about cervical cancer, having a family member diagnosed with cervical cancer, having information about pap smear, having a pap smear test and total score average of the scale is statistically significant (p<0.05).
Conclusion: According to the data obtained, about half of the participants have information about the cervical cancer and pap smear, and their attitudes towards early diagnosis of cervical cancer was found to be moderately positive. In the light of these results, the regulation of educational programs for women related to the importance of cervical cancer and pap smear tests and awareness-raising among women are recommended.
Keywords: Early diagnosis, pap smear, cervical cancer, screening