Practice of breast self-examination among rural women in Umuowa, Orlu government area, Imo state, Nigeria

Abstract

INTRODUCTION Breast cancer is now the most commonfemale malignancy and commonly associated with high levels of morbidity and mortality. 1 Breast cancer is a public health problem that is increasing throughout the world especially in developing countries. 2 It affects both sexes resulting in high number of people being affected with the disease. Although, breast cancer is 100 times more common in women than in men, men tend to have poorer outcomes due to delay in diagnosis. 3 Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in NorthEast Nigeria while it predominates in the SouthWestern part of the country. 4 A review of breast biopsies in the Lagos University Teaching Hospital showed 34 percent of all breast biopsies done over a 10 years period to be malignant. 5 It was also noted that a ABSTRACT Background: Regular practice of breast self-examination is the corner stone of the fight against breast cancer. Increasing breast health awareness would potentially allow for early detection of any anomalies and consequently result in early prognosis. This will in turn lead to increase in survival rate of breast cancer. This study was designed to assess practice of breast self-examination (BSE) among rural women. Methods: Descriptive survey design with the aid of a questionnaire which served as an interview schedule was conducted among 349 women in Umuowa Orlu L.G.A. The main outcome measures were the level of awareness and practice of BSE. Results: From a total of 349 women, a little above half (50%) of the respondents understood the meaning of BSE. Few of the respondents knew that BSE increases survival rate of breast cancer by early detection of abnormalities. Majority of the respondents did not know the abnormalities to check during BSE. Only a few of the respondents knew that BSE should be performed by every woman. Generally, the practice of BSE was inadequate for majority of the participants. There was a positive relationship between the respondents' awareness of breast cancer and their practice of BSE (P-value = 0.000<0.05). Conclusions: The importance of BSE as a key factor in the early detection of breast cancer should be stressed with special emphasis on regular practice of BSE. The proper procedure of BSE should be taught to women in order to ensure accuracy of performance.