Knowledge, attitudes and practices of women followed at the Ebolowa Regional Health Center (EHR) on cervical cancer prevention

Abstract

Introduction: Cervical cancer remains a major public health problem in Cameroon. Our objective was to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes and practices of women followed at the Ebolowa Regional Health Center (ERHC) on cervical cancer prevention.

Methodology: This was a cross –sectional descriptive study conducted at the ERHC among women who came consulting from July 30th to August 30th 2024 (1 month). Data was collected during an interview using a structured pretested questionnaire with the
search for information on sociodemographic characteristics, knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding cervical cancer prevention.

Results: A total of 254 women were included in our study. The average age of the participants was 32 .1 ± 6 years. The level of knowledge was significantly higher among women with higher education levels and those living in urban areas (p =0 ,004) Among
them 76.6% were aware of the existence of preventive measures, however 74.8% had never had the initiative to have a cervical cancer screening. Only 24.4% of the participants had undergone a cervical cancer screen with 96.5 of participants that had never received the vaccine against HPV and 97.6 of them had never thought of vaccinating their kids.

Conclusion: Most women are aware of the existence of cervical cancer but unfortunately their level of knowledge; attitudes and practices do not allow for better prevention against this pathology.