Knowledge of the students of the Faculty of Health Sciences of the University of Lomé on the risk factors of gynecological cancers

Abstract

Abstract Introduction:Gynecological cancers are often diagnosed at a late stage in Togo, due to difficulty of access to means of screening and a lack of technical platform. The objective of our study was to assess the knowledge of Faculty of Health Sciences of University of Lome students on the risk factors of these gynecological cancers. Methodology:This was a cross-sectional prospective study with a descriptive and analytical aim, carried out among 3rd year bachelor's and 3rd year doctoral students regularly enrolled at the Faculty of Health Sciences for the 2020-2021 academic year. Results :A total of 640 students correctly completed the form. The mean age was 24.66 ± 2.7 years. The sex ratio (M/F) was 2.5. The students had a good knowledge of the risk factors for cervical cancer ; but knowledge of risk factors of ovarian, endometrial, vaginal, and vulvar cancers was low. The main source of information was the courses at the Faculty of Health Sciences. Factors associated with knowledge of risk factors of cervical cancer were age (p-value = 0.0002), female gender (p-value = 0.0001 ; ORa = 2.46; 95% CI [1.31 -3.36]) and the fact of having followed a course on cervical cancer (p-value = 0.0073 ; ORa = 1.68; 95% CI [1.25-32.08]). Having done an internship in the gynecology department was the only factor associated with knowing the risk factors for ovarian cancer (p-value = 0.00001; ORa = 2.29; 95% CI [1 ,64-2.72]) and endometrial cancer (p-value = 0.0045 ; RCa = 2.63; 95% CI [1.56-3.07]). Conclusion :The knowledge of risk factors of the gynecological cancer by the students of the FSS is relatively low, varying according to the type of cancer. It appears to promote self-learning for an improvement of this knowledge.