Improving Colon Cancer Prevention in Poland. A Long Way Off

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyse knowledge on colon cancer prevention among patients of primary care and identify their sources of information. The questionnaire study was conducted among patients of 36 primary healthcare clinics in Poland between September 2018 and February 2019. Patients were interviewed separately by trained researchers. Over 39% of the primary health patients declared that their knowledge about colon cancer prevention is unsatisfactory. Information about colon cancer prevention varied according to sex, age and BMI. Men declared lower level of knowledge than women: 46% of men thought it was unsatisfactory compared with 36% of women (p = 0.003). Preventive recommendations were more often provided to patients over 60 years old (p < 0.01). Overweight and obese patients were more likely to receive recommendations on diet (p < 0.001) and physical activity (p < 0.001) than patients with normal weight. The most common source of information on colon cancer prevention was Internet (68%) and medical doctors (60%). There is a need for developing colon cancer prevention policy. Crucial aspect includes educational programs aimed at improving patient's knowledge and involving medical staff. The policymakers should pay greater attention to cancer prevention policies and medical staff involved in prevention to quality of communication to make sure patients thoroughly understand information they are provided.

How to Improve Cancer Prevention Knowledge? A Way to Identify Gaps and Tackle the Limited Availability of Health Education Services in Primary Health Care Using the European Code Against Cancer

“…Importantly, the incidence and mortality of preventable cancers are higher in men than in women ( 1 , 4 ). Our results also contradict previous findings that cancer prevention counselling intensifies with the growing age of patients ( 65 ).…”

“…Preventive counselling is often neglected by health care providers ( 32 , 64 , 65 ). It has been shown that more than 60% of Polish general practitioners (GPs) do not assess patients' lifestyles during consultations, although 64% believe they are obliged to provide health education; only 30% of GPs think that their knowledge in this area is sufficient ( 32 ).…”

“…It has been shown that more than 60% of Polish general practitioners (GPs) do not assess patients' lifestyles during consultations, although 64% believe they are obliged to provide health education; only 30% of GPs think that their knowledge in this area is sufficient ( 32 ). It translates to knowledge gaps among patients: for example most PHC patients in central Poland did not know about colorectal cancer prevention, and their knowledge about diet and physical activity was insufficient ( 65 ).…”

“…Among our participants, the group that was particularly critical of the available health education and promotion activities was farmers, who were also considerably less often informed about cancer prevention at their local clinics. In addition, it was men who were less frequently informed about cancer prevention in PHC, although their knowledge and behaviours regarding cancer risk factors are found to be worse than women's ( 65 ), and their willingness to reduce cancer risk through lifestyle change is also lower ( 6 ). Importantly, the incidence and mortality of preventable cancers are higher in men than in women ( 1 , 4 ).…”

Mistrust and Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories Differently Mediate the Effects of Psychological Factors on Propensity for COVID-19 Vaccine

“…Similar results were found by Patelarou et al (2021), showing that those who got information from newspapers, television, radio, and government agencies had more trust in the COVID-19 vaccine than those who had self-perceived knowledge or collected information through social or online media. In fact, misinformation is more available on the internet where the information may be less accurate or verified (Liu and Yang, 2020;Obiała et al, 2020;Patelarou et al, 2021). Skeptics also use online platforms to advocate vaccine refusal.…”