Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Women Referring to Yazd City Health Centers regarding Breast Cancer Screening

Introduction: The early detection of breast cancer is directly relevant to womenʹs knowledge about breast cancer and its screening methods. The knowledge, attitude, and behavior of women in Yazd have not been examined yet; however breast cancer is one of the priorities of the Ministry of Health. The objective of this study is to examine the knowledge, attitude, and practice of women referring to Yazd city health centers regarding breast cancer screening and its relationship with socio-demographic variables. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 438 women referring to health centers of Yazd city in 2010 by using cluster sampling. A standard questionnaire was designed to elicit socio-demographic data, and knowledge, attitude and practices of these women towards breast cancer. The data were analyzed by statistical tests of SPSS software. Results: 380 (86.8%) participants had moderate to poor knowledge of breast cancer screening methods. There was a significant relationship between the knowledge and educational level and age. 310 (70.8%) participants had moderate attitude. There was a significant relationship between the attitude, age and job. 288 (65.8%) participants had poor practice. There was a significant relationship between the practice and all variables other than familial history. The main reason (184 (59.4%) participants) for not practicing breast self examination is reported to be "not being aware of the correct practice of breast self-examination". The most important source of information was television. Conclusion: With respect to the results of this study, we recommend the establishment of institutes and guidelines that will spread information about breast cancer screening