Knowledge, attitude, and practice of cervical cancer screening among women living with HIV in the Kilimanjaro region, northern Tanzania

Abstract

Background: Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer globally among women in incidence and mortality. Women living with HIV (WLHIV) are disproportionately at a higher risk of developing the disease.Aim: To determine the knowledge, attitude, and practice of cervical cancer screening among WLHIV in the Kilimanjaro region, northern Tanzania, following the integration of these services in routine HIV care in the country. Methods and results:A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Kilimanjaro region among 297 WLHIV attending care and treatment centers (CTC) in Hai district and Mawenzi regional hospitals in northern Tanzania between 21 August and 3 September 2020. A questionnaire was used for data collection using face-to-face interviews. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Frequencies and percentages summarized categorical variables and numerical variables summarized using median and interquartile range (IQR). About half (50.2%) of 297 WLHIV in this study had ever screened for cervical cancer, and 64% screened within the past 12 months preceding the survey. Although 90% ever heard of cervical cancer screening, only 20.5% knew when WLHIV should start screening. Over half (52.5%) had adequate knowledge of prevention, 38.4% on risk factors, and 27.9% of cervical cancer signs and symptoms. Two-thirds (66.7%) had positive attitudes toward cervical cancer screening. A major source of cervical cancer screening information was the health care providers (80.1%) and the mass media (66%), particularly radio. Conclusions:The WLHIV in this study had inadequate knowledge but favorable attitudes toward cervical cancer screening, while half had screened for cervical cancer.Efforts should be directed to capacity building of health care providers at CTC and scaling up the mass media campaigns as relevant interventions to promote the uptake of cervical cancer screening programs among WLHIV in Tanzania.

The State of Cervical Cancer Screening and HPV Vaccination in Africa: In the Advent of Advanced Health Care

“…Kasa, et al [100] reported that out of 735 women recruited in their study to assess attitude and knowledge of cervical cancer in North West Ethiopia, only 7.3% of respondents had ever been screened for cervical cancer, while 172 (23.1%) were knowledgeable of the disease and 63% of the respondents had a negative attitude toward the disease. Similar studies in Tanzania, Kenya, Cameroun, Sudan and Ethiopia have reported a low level of awareness and knowledge of cervical cancer in women residing in these countries [121][122][123][124][125][126]. The time required by primary healthcare professionals in Lagos to detect and refer cervical cancer patients to a tertiary health facility for treatment and management was an essential factor in patients presenting with an advanced stage of the disease.…”

Factors associated with cervical cancer screening among women living with HIV in the Kilimanjaro region, northern Tanzania: A cross-sectional study

“…The methods applied in this study are also published elsewhere ( Kimondo et al, 2021 ). Briefly, we carried out a health facility-based cross-sectional study design in the Kilimanjaro region between August 21 and September 3, 2020.…”

“…In Tanzania, the prevalence ranges from 7.3 % in Mwanza to 11 % in Morogoro ( Kafuruki et al, 2013 , Chambuso et al, 2017 ). This high prevalence might be partly contributed to by poor cervical cancer screening among women ( Kimondo et al, 2021 ).…”

“…Due to its low cost, Visual Inspection with Acetic acid (VIA) is the widely used mode of cervical cancer screening in Tanzania. Despite the integration, only half of WLHIV attending CTC in the Kilimanjaro region screened for cervical cancer ( Kimondo et al, 2021 ). Knowledge and attitude towards cervical cancer screening, patient – health care provider (HCP) relationship, and fear of the test results are among of the factors reported to affect cervical cancer screening ( Kasraeian et al, 2020 ).…”

Cytl1 is a Key Target for Chemoradiotherapy Resistance in Locally Advanced Cervical Cancer: Based on Bioinformatics Analysis

“…Cervical cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death in women worldwide [1,2] . According to GLOBOCAN 2018 cancer statistics, there were estimated 569,847 new cases and 311,365 deaths from cervical cancer worldwide in 2018 [2] .…”