Breast Cancer Screening Practices Amongst Female Students in Pakistan

Abstract

Cancer is currently responsible for around 6 million deaths worldwide. Cancer-related deaths are predicted to rise to 74% in the next several years which is alarming for the developing countries. Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in women and is also the leading cause mortality. Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the practices opted by Pakistani women about breast self and clinical Examination and screening modalities. Methods: Total 453 selected female University students using the "Epitool" online sample calculation website with a 95% confidence interval and a 5% margin of error were selected. All girls between the age of 18-55 years who were currently enrolled in one of the study programs and could complete the English questionnaire were included in the study. The Breast Cancer Investigation Questionnaire (BCIQ) was used in study. SPSS version 25.0 was used to analyze the data. Results: The respondents' mean age was 22.87± 4.67 years. The prevalence of knowledge of breast cancer screening techniques was high 341 (75.3%), 245(53.3%) and 273 (60%), respectively, for breast self-examination, clinical breast examination, and mammography. However, only 345 (75.1%), 303 (36.9%), and 255 (56.2%) knew BSE, CBE, and mammography are helpful in breast cancer diagnosis respectively. Conclusion: Even though many females were aware of breast cancer and self-examination, the number of women who do BSE was alarmingly low.