Awareness and attitude about carcinoma cervix and human papillomavirus vaccine: A cross-sectional study among undergraduate female medical students

Abstract

deaths.[1] According to data of 2017, in India every year 122844 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 67477 die from the disease. Cervical cancer ranks the 2 nd most frequent cancer among women in India and the 2 nd most frequent cancer among women between 15 and 44 years of age. About 5.0% of women in the general population are estimated to harbor cervical human papillomavirus (HPV) -16/18 infection at a given time.[3]The principal causative agent for the development of cervical cancer is the infection of specific high-risk types of HPVs. Although more than 140 types of HPVs have been identified only about 40 types are sexually transmitted. Of these, two high-risk HPV types 16 and HPV 18 are responsible for more than 80% of cervical cancer in India, and the low-risk types are HPV-6 and HPV-11, which cause genital warts, the Research ArticleBackground: Cancer cervix is the leading type of cancer in India. One woman die of cervical cancer in every 8 min in India. The primary cause of developing cervical cancer is chronic infection with high-risk human papillomaviruses (HPVs). Vaccination against HPV is the primary mode of prevention from cancer cervix. Objective: The objective of the study was to assess the awareness and attitude of young medical students about cancer cervix, its cause and HPV vaccine. Materials and Methods: An observational cross-sectional study was done among 2 nd year to final year female medical students of M.K.C.G Medical College and Hospital for a period of 2 months. Data were collected using a self-administered, semi-structured, and pre-tested questionnaire. The study explored knowledge on HPV infection and cervical cancer, as well as awareness regarding the vaccine and their willingness to take the vaccine. Results: In the present study student's awareness about etiology of cancer cervix was 100%. About 98.6% of students knew about the high-risk strains of HPVs causing cancer. The awareness about preventable nature of cancer cervix among study participants was 93.8% and 92.5% students knew that the vaccine is available in India. About 87% of students wanted to be immunized with HPV vaccine. Conclusion: There is not enough knowledge about cancer cervix and HPV vaccine among medical students. Information regarding cancer cervix and HPV vaccine should be included early in the medical education curriculum. Group discussions and forums should be conducted to fill the knowledge gap.

HPV and Cervical Cancer Control Programs: Effective Translation of Knowledge into Practice

“…Recent screening recommendations for specific age groups as per the American Cancer Society (ACS) screening guidelines are as follows: [1,2].…”

“…India also has the highest age standardized incidence of cervical cancer in South Asia at 22, compared to 19.2 in Bangladesh, 13 in Sri Lanka, and 2.8 in Iran [1,2].…”