Knowledge of breast cancer in women in Sierra Leone

Abstract

Curationis 29(3): 70-77Breast cancer has been described as one of the life-threatening diseases affecting women and is a major problem in women's health issues. The unrecorded number of cases of breast lumps and breast cancer observed in women in Sierra Leone prompted the researcher to organize a "Breast Week" during which 1 200 women were educated on breast cancer and the importance of breast health. This research is a follow up of the "Breast Week" which was organized in Freetown, Sierra Leone The specific objective of this study was to assess whether the knowledge and teachings given to the women who participated in this project was fully understood. A sample size of 120 women (10%) who participated in the "Breast Week" was obtained through systematic sampling.A quantitative approach was adopted and a structured interview schedule guided the data collection process. The data were processed through use of SPSS and Microsoft Excel. Texts from open ended questions were categorized and frequency counts were applied to the data. It was found that the majority (96.6%) of the women had some knowledge of breast cancer. They linked breast cancer to the signs and symptoms associated with it and were able to describe the disease as one that kills women if not promptly detected and/or treated appropriately. Findings indicate that the majority of the women are aware of the dangers of the disease and had knowledge of someone who had died of breast cancer (59.2%). An assessment of the effectiveness of knowledge on breast cancer showed that these women could identify breast cancer as a disease that affects women and may cause death if not detected on time.

Knowledge, attitudes and practices toward breast cancer screening in a rural South African community

“…Lack of basic knowledge and an effective information delivery system for breast cancer further threatens the life and well-being of women. Breast cancer is silently killing women – mainly those who have no knowledge and continue to be ignorant about breast cancer and breast diagnostic screening methods for early detection (Shepherd & McInerney 2006 :71). Knowledge is a necessary component but it is insufficient unless the cultural relevance is assured by the health professional providing direct healthcare (Dow Meneses & Yarbro 2007 :111).…”

Women'S Awareness of Cancer Symptoms: A Review of the Literature

“…Thirty six articles were identified that addressed women's awareness of breast cancer symptoms: the majority were from the UK (ten in total), with four from the USA [12][13][14][15], three each from Malaysia [16][17][18] and Iran [19][20][21], two each from the Republic of Ireland [22,23], India [24,25] and Nigeria [26,27], and one each from Canada [28], Australia [29], New Zealand [30], Germany [31], Singapore [32], Sierra Leone [33], Nepal [34], Turkey [35], Pakistan [36] and Myanmar [37].…”

“…Twelve articles reported on surveys conducted with women who were diagnosed with breast cancer [13,31,41,42], attending for follow-up of symptoms [23,30,43,44], attending for breast screening [45,46] or attending a breast cancer educational program or information session (Table 2) [33,35]. Sample sizes ranged from 69 [41] to 867 women [46].…”

“…Studies from non-English speaking countries, and with rural populations, also found low levels of symptom awareness. For example, Indian respondents identified an average of three symptoms from a list of eight (and four distractors), with rural respondents being less likely to correctly identify symptoms [24]; only 42% of women attending a breast information session in Sierra Leone could name some symptoms [33]; and only 21.4% of a Nigerian sample were aware that breast cancer presents most commonly as a painless lump, with even fewer responding correctly to questions on other symptoms, including ulceration of the nipple (data not provided) [26].…”

Knowledge and Attitudes about Breast Cancer among Women: A Wake-Up Call in Nigeria

“…Breast cancer has been a major cause of death subtly killing women – especially those with little or no education. This is compounded by the lack of timely information about breast cancer and poor diagnostics screening methods for early detection [15], [14].…”